Victory Chronicles-DAY 699

A missile attack by Russia on Ukraine has resulted in the deaths of five people and injuries to at least 40 others. Fires broke out in different districts of Kyiv due to the attack, causing one fatality and civilian injuries. Several buildings, including high-rise buildings, a private building, and cars, were damaged. 

In the Bucha district of the Kyiv Oblast, two multi-story buildings, a private house, outbuildings, and cars were damaged, and three people were injured. In the Pavlohrad area of the Dnipropetrovs’k Oblast, one person was killed and another injured. 

Kharkiv was also targeted, with two multi-story buildings hit, resulting in the deaths of three people and injuries to around 30 others. The attack in Kharkiv also damaged transformer substations, leaving approximately 11,000 consumers without electricity. Rescue operations are underway, while psychologists and police investigators are assisting on the ground. Restoration work is ongoing to restore electricity in Kharkiv.

On the night of January 23rd, the Russian armed forces launched 41 missiles at Ukraine, of which Ukrainian air defense systems successfully intercepted 21. The attacks on Ukrainian cities used various types of missiles, including cruise, ballistic, air-to-air, and anti-aircraft-guided missiles. The strikes resulted in at least six reported deaths and over 50 injuries in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipro Oblasts. However, the Ukrainian Armed Forces were able to successfully shoot down all 15 Russian cruise missiles, five ballistic missiles, and one air-to-air guided missile. 

Sappers of the State Emergency Service work at the sites of the morning enemy attack. Pyrotechnics of the Mobile Rescue Center of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine are eliminating the consequences of the shelling of the capital in the Sviatoshynskyi district of Kyiv. A warhead of an X-101 missile was found and safely removed. At another address, sappers removed missile fragments that did not pose any threat.

The Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine’s official channel published a video of Kharkiv rescuers’ work. The video captures the moment when a person is rescued from the rubble of a Kharkiv high-rise building. In total, 27 people have been rescued from buildings shelled by Russia in Kharkiv.

Russian officials and information space actors are attempting to further rhetorically justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by misrepresenting a decree that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed on January 22 concerning discrimination against ethnic Ukrainians in Russia. 

Zelensky signed a decree titled “On the Territories of the Russian Federation Historically Inhabited by Ukrainians,” which accurately stated that Russia has systematically oppressed and continues to oppress Ukrainians living in Russia and eroding their national identity, including on lands historically inhabited by ethnic Ukrainians in modern day Russia’s Krasnodar Krai and Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, and Rostov oblasts.

The decree instructs the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers to develop an action plan for preserving Ukrainian national identity in Russia, documenting the history of Russia’s oppression of its Ukrainian communities, countering disinformation about the history of Ukrainians in Russia, and disseminating materials about Ukrainian national state formations in different historical periods. Zelensky’s decree does not establish any territorial demands upon Russia, as select Russian ultranationalists falsely claimed.

Senior fighter Marichel Zvynka, with the call sign German, died on July 27, 2023, during a combat mission near the village of Robotyno, Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Next month, on August 15, the defender would have turned 51.

Marichel was originally from the city of Hertsa, Chernivtsi Oblast. Then, he entered the Chernivtsi Railway School. He got married and lived with his family in Chernivtsi. In civilian life, he worked as an electrician. He liked to go in for sports, hunting, and fishing. In 2015, he served under contract at the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. In 2017-2018, he participated in the ATO.

With the outbreak of full-scale war in March 2022, the man joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine to defend his country and family. At first, he was in the military unit A 7106. He fought in Kharkiv and Sumy Oblasts. Upon his return, he was transferred to the 116th Separate Mechanized Brigade. He was promoted to the position of senior rifleman and went to defend the Zaporizhzhia direction. While in the active combat zones, he never complained that it was hard for him, but, on the contrary, he tried to support everyone, convincing them that everything would be fine.

“My dad fulfilled his duty as a citizen of Ukraine, a patriot, to protect his country with honor and dignity. He remained faithful to his comrades, his people and his homeland until his last breath. The best husband, father, grandfather. We are proud of him,” said Liudmyla Bukharieva. The defender was buried on the Alley of Glory at the central cemetery in Chernivtsi. Marichel is survived by his wife, children and grandchildren.

*Marichel’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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