Over 150 clashes recorded on front lines, half of them near Pokrovsk, General Staff reports

According to the April 5 evening report by the General Staff, 152 military encounters were recorded since the start of the day.

“The most intense situation is in Pokrovsk, Lyman, Toretsk and Kursk directions,” the General Staff wrote.

Sixty-five clashes were reported near Pokrovsk alone.

According to Ukraine’s Armed Forces, Russia carried out 73 air strikes, dropping 106 guided bombs and using 844 kamikaze drones.

Besides clashes on the front lines, Russia has actively attacked Ukrainian civilian sites.

Russia attacked the city of Mykolaiv with Shahed-type drones, Governor Vitalii Kim said late on April 5.

A day prior, a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih killed 19 people, including nine children, according to local authorities. Seventy-four were reportedly injured.

Zelensky said in his evening address “that Russia must be held accountable for everything it has done.”

The U.S. and Ukraine agreed to a full ceasefire on March 11 but Russia rejected it. Instead, Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. agreed on March 25 to a partial truce covering energy infrastructure and the Black Sea.

However, the Kremlin has blocked the partial ceasefire as well, saying that the Black Sea truce would take effect only after some sanctions against Russia are lifted.

Inside Ukraine’s desperate race to train more soldiers

New recruit Vitalii Yalovyi knew one thing after completing the Ukrainian military’s boot camp: He was not prepared for war. The 37-year-old felt physically unfit, forcing him to miss some courses during the month-long training. His leg was still hurting from long daily walks at a training center i…

The Kyiv IndependentAsami Terajima