Prepared by Sofia Oliynyk, Maryana Zaviyska, Anna Dovha
Photo: Zelenskyi Official telegram channel
Pseudo-referenda.
On September 23, representatives of the Russian occupation administrations in the territories of the east and south of Ukraine announced the start of ‘referenda’ on the inclusion of the occupied Ukrainian territories into the Russian Federation. The occupiers plan to announce the results of the ‘referendum’ on September 27-28. White House spokeswoman Karin Jean-Pierre stated that the United States has already received data on the results of the ‘referenda’ in Ukraine that Russia will announce and emphasized that these referenda are manipulative. At the same time, The Ministry of Reintegration of the Occupied Territories of Ukraine reported that observers from Belarus, Syria, Egypt, Brazil, Venezuela, Uruguay, Togo, and South Africa participated in pseudo-referendums in the occupied territories. The Ministry emphasized that referendums in the temporarily occupied territories are absolutely illegal both according to the laws of Ukraine and international legal documents.
The President of the United States Joe Biden stated that the county will never recognize Ukrainian territory as anything other than part of Ukraine. The G7 leaders condemned holding the pseudo-referenda in the four regions of Ukraine. At the same time, NATO condemned the plan to hold so-called ‘referenda’ on joining the Russian Federation in the Ukrainian regions partly controlled by the Russian military. Also, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said that Turkey will not recognize the results of the Russian pseudo-referenda.
In response to the pseudo-referenda, Ukraine has requested an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council on Russia’s sham referenda in the occupied territories of Ukraine.
Partial mobilization.
In connection with the ‘partial mobilization’ announced in the Russian Federation, Russian military commissariats have been put on 24-hour duty. Also, the command of the Russian occupying forces sends new mobilized servicemen without preparation to re-staff the units that had losses, directly to the front line. In addition, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which provide for up to 10 years of imprisonment for military personnel for voluntary surrender, desertion, refusal to participate in hostilities, and also increase punishment for a number of other acts. In response to recent events, mass protests took place in Dagestan. The federal highway was blocked by protesters for the second time in four days, and the police opened fire in the air. Also, a huge number of Russian citizens are trying to leave the Russian federation after the announcement of the mobilization. In this regard, the Netherlands announced that the country will not deport Russian men who left the Russian Federation to avoid mobilization. The president of the Czech Republic also stated that the country should accept Russians fleeing mobilization. The head of the European Council, Charles Michel, called for the same actions. According to him, the EU should show ‘openness to those who do not want the Kremlin to use them for its own purposes.’
Cities under attack.
Kharkiv region. On September 23, the Russian invaders shelled settlements located close to the border with the Russian Federation and the contact line. In Kupiansk district, 5 people were injured, 2 of them are children. In Chuhuiv and Izum districts, two people were blown up on a mine and injured. On September 24, five districts of the region were attacked. In the settlement of Dvorichna, an educational institution was damaged as a result of the shelling. In the Chuhuiv district, the infrastructure of an agro-industrial enterprise was damaged. In Kupians district 5 people were injured as a result of the shelling. In Kharkiv district, one person was blown on the mine and injured.
Mykolaiv region. At night on September 23, the Russian occupiers fired at Mykolaiv. As a result, an office building of an industrial infrastructure facility, private houses, water supply, and power grids were damaged. The Russian military also shelled the two districts of the region. As a result, a civil infrastructure facility, private houses, cars, and equipment were damaged. During the day, villages located on the demarcation line remained under constant fire. On September 24, Mykolaiv was under attack again. No casualties were reported. Also, the Russian invaders shelled the Shirokivska community. Two residential buildings and non-residential buildings were damaged. On the morning of September 25, the Russian military attacked Mykolaiv. As a result, residential buildings were damaged. There is also a hit in the water supply network. No casualties were reported. On the same day, the Russian invaders launched a missile attack on the coastal area of Ochakiv.
Dnipropetrovsk region. In the morning of September 23, the Russian invaders shelled the Nikopol district. In Marhanets, 2 people were killed and 9 people were injured as a result of the attack. 8 private houses were damaged and one house was destroyed. Due to the attack, 2200 families were left without electricity. In Nikopol, 10 houses were damaged. On September 24, the Russian military fired again at Nikopol district. Two people were injured and 20 private and high-rise houses and 10 farm buildings were damaged in Marhanets. Also, a local bakery and a couple of institutions were damaged. Several cars were set on fire as a result of the shelling. On the morning of September 25, the Russian occupiers attacked Nikopol district. In Nikopol, houses and an electric substation were damaged. More than 3200 families were without electricity. Power lines were also mutilated in Marhanets. Almost 3000 families were left without electricity. The Russian invaders left up to 500 people without electricity in the Chervonohrihorivska community. Private houses, shops, a kindergarten, a dispensary, cars, a pharmacy, a culture house, a stadium, and a gas station were damaged.
Zaporizhzhia region. On September 23, the Russian occupiers attacked Zaporizhzhia. The civil infrastructure facility was destroyed, houses and cars were damaged, three people were injured. At night on September 24, the Russian invaders launched a missile attack on Zaporizhzhia. As a result, infrastructure facilities were damaged. One missile hit the residential sector of the city and caused a fire in a multi-story building. One person was killed and 7 people were injured. On September 25, Russian missile strikes were recorded in several districts of the city of Zaporizhia and a village near the regional center in the Zaporizhia district. Three people were injured. In one of the districts, a power line was damaged.
Sumy region. On September 23, the Russian military shelled 4 communities in the region. Due to damage to the power line, 3000 houses were left without electricity. Chernihiv region. On September 24 and 25, the Russian invaders shelled Snovska and Semenivska communities.
Odessa region. On September 23, the Russian army attacked Odesa with kamikaze drones from the sea. As a result, a civilian was killed. Two drones destroyed the administration building in the port area. On September 25, the Russian invaders attacked the administrative building in the center of Odessa with three drones. The Russian army hit the administrative building in the center of the city three times. The buildings around the administrative building were slightly damaged.
Cities under occupation.
Crimea. In the occupied Crimea, 90% of those who have received summons since partial mobilization are Crimean Tatars. Such a scale of mobilization can lead to a hidden genocide of the Crimean Tatar people, the analyst Yevgeny Yaroshenko reported. According to the norms of international law, one of the forms of genocide is the deliberate creation of such living conditions, calculated for the complete or partial destruction of an ethnic group, with the intent to completely or partially destroy such a group. Melitopol. Occupiers with weapons force city residents to participate in a pseudo-referendum. Those who refused to vote are threatened with deportation. Luhansk region. The Russian occupiers create a list of people who vote against joining Russia. Also, the settlements in the region are closed to entry and exit during the ‘referendum’ period. In addition, during the pseudo-referendum, Russian passports are issued to local residents, and then also summonses to men. Kherson region. In the region, people are forced to ‘vote’ for themselves and all their relatives in a pseudo-referendum.
Foreign policy.
The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, called for the suspension of Russia’s membership in the UN Security Council and the reform of the Council. In addition, the European Union sent a letter to the United Nations on September 23 demanding it publish a report on damage to telecommunication infrastructure in Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Euractiv reported.
Ukraine stripped Iran’s ambassador to Ukraine of accreditation due to the supply of drones to Russia.
Foreign Minister of Australia Penny Wong has urged China to use its clout as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to prevail upon Russian President Vladimir Putin to halt his invasion of Ukraine, Brisbane times reported. At the same time, China reaffirmed the respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as its rejection of the use of force as a means of resolving differences.
Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree on the appointment of Oleksiy Makeev as the extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of Ukraine to Germany. Oleksiy Makeev is a special representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on sanctions policy and a member of the Yermak-McFaul international expert group.
The United States warned the Russia about ‘catastrophic consequences’ in the event of using nuclear weapons against Ukraine
Human rights.
Estonia has formally submitted a declaration of intervention to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in relation to Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, and more specifically, Russia’s non-compliance with the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
A total of 447 bodies of killed persons were exhumed from the mass burial site in Izyum, Kharkiv region, of which: 194 were men; 215 – women; 22 – military; 5 – children; 11 – the sex is not unidentified. Many of the dead have missing limbs, bound hands, shrapnel wounds, head and chest injuries, injured or missing genitalia, broken ribs, stab wounds, bullet wounds, and ropes around their necks. In the meantime, two more big mass graves with hundreds of people were found in Izyum.
In the de-occupied territory of the Kharkiv region, law enforcement officers discovered 18 places where Russian servicemen detained and tortured civilians.
The head of the UN independent international commission to investigate violations in Ukraine, Eric Möze, confirmed that war crimes were committed by the Russians invaders in Ukraine. The investigation of the UN commission was conducted in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Sumy regions. 27 locations were visited and more than 150 victims and witnesses were interviewed.
Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration of the Occupied Territories Iryna Vereshchuk reported that 2500 Ukrainian soldiers and civilians remain in Russian captivity. Also, in the question of exchange of prisoners, Ukraine supports the concept proposed by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres – ‘all for all’, however, Russia does not want to implement this formula.
Energy security.
Poland, Ireland, and the three Baltic nations want the EU to extend its sanctions on Russian energy to include a ban on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) products and restrictions on nuclear energy cooperation. Meanwhile, Ukraine already has the opportunity to import gas from LNG terminals in Lithuania, Poland, and Croatia.
The Director General of the IAEA, Raphael Grossi, promised to increase the number of agency representatives at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
Sanctions.
Japan has decided to ban exports of chemical weapons-related goods to Russia in an additional sanction against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, and is ‘deeply concerned’ about the possible use of nuclear weapons, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said on Monday. Japan also added 21 Russian organizations such as science labs as the target of existing export bans, according to a government statement released after Monday’s cabinet meeting
Education.
Google will provide up to 5000 scholarships to Ukrainians who have lost their jobs or are at risk of losing them due to the full-scale invasion, which cover access and full support for training on Coursera.
Sport.
The Russian athletes and their support team are temporarily suspended from participating in International Luge Federation sanctioned events.
Awards.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky topped the list of the 50 most influential Jews in the world in 2022 by the Israeli media The Jerusalem Post.
WeRUkraine.
Immerse yourself in the virtual reality of the war waged by Russia against Ukraine with the help of AR/VR tours and live broadcasts. WeRUkraine project allows visitors to experience visits to the damaged sights of Irpin, Moshchun, Borodyanka, Bucha.
Reading corner.
- On a Corpse’s Wrist, an Emblem of Ukrainian Fortitude | The New York Times – When they pulled Serhiy Sova’s body from a grave in Izium, his wrist bore a bracelet in Ukraine’s colors, given to him by his children. The image has transfixed the nation.
- Freed British hostage, 59, says his captors forced him to record a goodbye message to his daughter | Daily Mail Online – Five British hostages who faced the threat of a Russian firing squad in Ukraine made an emotional return to Britain yesterday. After months of imprisonment, torture and fear of execution, the men were finally reunited with their loved ones.
- ‘They Are Watching’: Inside Russia’s Vast Surveillance State | The New York Times – A cache of nearly 160 000 files from Russia’s powerful internet regulator provides a rare glimpse inside Vladimir V. Putin’s digital crackdown: ‘The internet regulator is part of a larger tech apparatus that Mr. Putin has built over the years, which also includes a domestic spying system that intercepts phone calls and internet traffic, online disinformation campaigns and the hacking of other nations’ government systems.’
Statistics.
- General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced the total estimated losses of the Russian military as of 10 a.m., September 26, 2022: personnel – around 57200, tanks ‒ 2290, APV ‒ 4857, artillery systems – 1369, MLRS – 330, anti-aircraft warfare systems – 172, fixed-wing aircraft – 260, helicopters – 220, operational-tactical level UAV – 970, cruise missiles –241, boats and light speed boats – 15, soft-skinned vehicles and fuel tankers – 3711, special equipment – 131.
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