Live blog: Ukraine says four 'torture' sites found in Kherson

Monday, November 21, 2022

Ukraine says four 'torture' sites found in Kherson

Ukraine has said that it had identified four locations where Russian forces tortured detainees in Kherson before Moscow withdrew troops from the southern Ukrainian city.

Since the Russian army withdrew on November 11 after occupying the city for eight months, Kiev has accused Moscow's forces of perpetrating abuses on a "horrific" scale.

The Office of the General Prosecutor said officials had inspected "four premises" where Russian troops "illegally detained people and brutally tortured them."

Top Russian official warns of possible nuclear accident at Zaporizhzhia

The head of Russia's state-run atomic energy agency, Rosatom, warned there was a risk of a nuclear accident at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, following renewed shelling over the weekend.

Moscow and Kiev have traded accusations of shelling the facility for months since Russian forces took control of it in March, shortly after invading Ukraine. Renewed shelling triggered fresh fears of a possible disaster at the site.

"The plant is at risk of a nuclear accident. We were in negotiations with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) all night," Interfax quoted Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev as saying.

Ukraine urges civilians to leave liberated areas for winter

Ukrainian authorities have started evacuating civilians from the recently-liberated areas of the Kherson region and the neighbouring province of Mykolaiv, fearing that damage to the infrastructure is too severe for people to endure the upcoming winter, officials said.

Residents of the two southern regions, regularly shelled in the past months by Russian forces, have been advised to move to safer areas in the central and western parts of the country, said Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.

The government will provide “transportation, accommodation, medical care," she said.

Norway to fund Ukraine gas procurement with $195 mln aid

The Norwegian government said it had agreed to assist Ukraine with gas procurement for the coming winter, providing funding amounting to 2 billion Norwegian crowns ($195 million).

The funds, part of a previously announced aid package of 10 billion crowns, will go via the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

"It is important to channel the support through an established, internationally recognised organisation, which will ensure effective and transparent use of the funding," Norway's Minister of Finance Trygve Slagsvold Vedum said in a statement.

Ukraine marks Freedom Day

The Ukrainian people are united in order to protect their freedom, independence and nation, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said as the country marks its Freedom Day under the shadow of Russia's attack.

“Today we celebrate the Day of Dignity and Freedom. A holiday that shows that for us dignity and freedom is a holiday. The answer to the question of who Ukrainians are and what is most important to them ,” he said in a statement published by the Ukrainian presidency.

“Everyone saw what kind of people we have! Willing to give the last. Willing to stand to the last. They did not lose dignity. Bravery. Faith in themselves. And they united. In order not to lose freedom. Not to lose independence. Not to lose Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.

Russia shelling remains 'extremely high' — Ukraine

Russian forces are pounding Ukrainian positions with artillery fire and in the eastern region alone have launched almost 400 strikes, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

"The fiercest battles, as before, are in the Donetsk region. Although there were fewer attacks today due to worsening weather, the amount of Russian shelling, unfortunately, remains extremely high," Zelenskyy said.

"In the Luhansk region, we are slowly moving forward while fighting. As of now, there have been almost 400 artillery attacks in the east since the start of the day," he continued.

For live updates from Sunday (November 20), click here