Russia on Saturday announced that its forces had controlled several settlements, while the Ukrainian side reported that it had repelled multiple Russian attacks, according to the latest updates from the two countries.
According to a statement released by the Russian Ministry of Defense on Saturday, Russian forces controlled a settlement in the Donetsk region and a settlement in the Zaporizhzhia region. Also, the Russian military took control of the settlement of Veselovka in Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region.
The statement also noted that Russian air defense systems shot down a total of 73 Ukrainian drones over the past 24 hours, while Russian forces struck 148 areas within Ukraine, targeting military airfield infrastructure, drone assembly workshops, storage facilities and command centers.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday that over the past day, Ukrainian drones have repeatedly attacked energy infrastructure in Russia's Belgorod region, cutting some high-voltage lines and damaging a number of transformers, and causing power outages for over 9,000 households in the area. Ukraine has not responded to this incident yet.
The ministry previously reported that Ukraine has recently used weapons such as drones to attack Russian energy infrastructure. Ukraine said on Friday that the Russian Defense Ministry's statement is fabricated.
Meanwhile, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said on the same day that Ukrainian forces had repelled multiple Russian attacks in directions such as Pokrovsk and Kursk.
In addition, the Ukrainian air force successfully destroyed three air Russian defense systems and 164 drones, the Ukrainian side said.
On the same day, the missile and drone attacks by the Russian military had caused multiple casualties in Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, and other places, according to Ukrainian media.
Russia claims control of several settlements, Ukraine says repelling Russian attacks
Residents of earthquake-damaged areas of Myanmar are in urgent need of safe drinking water, health care, and temporary shelter after Friday's devastating quake, according to Arnaud de Baecque the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Myanmar.
The quake hit the center of Myanmar, with an epicenter close to Mandalay, the country's second-largest city.
Despite international rescue and relief efforts, residents are living in harsh conditions and facing multiple challenges, de Baecque said.
"People are sleeping in the street, people are trying to access medical care, but the buildings are damaged as well. The hospital and primary health-care center cannot be used for now. We have sent already some reinforcement from Yangon together with the National Society of the Myanmar Red Cross to support the initial efforts. And we know also that we've seen the Chinese response, including the search and rescue teams that are still active in the first few days. We hope to find more survivors. And also the support given by the Chinese Red Cross society that is integrated into the general effort," said de Baecque.
The most urgent needs of the affected residents are clean water, health care, especially for the elderly, and safe shelter, according to the ICRC official, with scorching temperatures adding to the challenges.
"Access to safe drinking water is a priority. As the electricity is down, the water pumping system is not working, so the treatment of the water is not happening, temperatures are very high. We're reaching the hot season up to 40 degrees Celsius. Support for old people injured during the earthquake and their health in general would be the second one. And the third is support for livelihood and people who cannot access their homes and their kitchens just to keep having food and a way of sleeping in a safe manner, even if it's outside in the street," said de Baecque.
The death toll from the 7.9-magnitude earthquake has risen to 2,719, with 4,521 people injured and more than 440 listed as missing, according to an announcement on Tuesday from Myanmar's leader Min Aung Hlaing.
Myanmar residents lack clean water, health care, shelter after quake: Red Cross official
