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Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast village destroys medical facility, causes blackout

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Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast village destroys medical facility, causes blackout
A medical facility destroyed by Russian shelling of Kozacha Lopan, Kharkiv Oblast, northeastern Ukraine, on Dec. 5, 2023. (Viacheslav Zadorenko/Telegram)

Russian forces shelled the village of Kozacha Lopan in Kharkiv Oblast, destroying a clinic and leaving residents without electricity and mobile connection, a local official said on Dec. 5.

Kozacha Lopan, which lies just two kilometers away from Ukraine’s northeastern border with Russia, suffers from Russian strikes on a regular basis.

The village, with a pre-war population of around 5,000 people, is located nearly 40 kilometers north of the regional capital, Kharkiv.

The Russian shelling of Kozacha Lopan also damaged the clinic’s vehicles, the central system of the village’s gas supply, and several power lines, according to Viacheslav Zadorenko, the head of the military administration of a nearby town of Derhachi.

Less than an hour later, Zadorenko reported that the mobile network has been partially restored in the village. There were no casualties in the attack, he said.

Zadorenko published photos showing the destroyed clinic, saying that the facility “had nothing to do with military infrastructure."

“On its territory, medical care was constantly provided to locals, mostly elderly who survived the Russian occupation and are now forced to live in constant stress due to enemy shelling.”

He called on residents of Kozacha Lopan to leave the village “at least for the winter period.”

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Dinara Khalilova

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Dinara Khalilova is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a news editor. In the early weeks of Russia’s full-scale invasion, she worked as a fixer and local producer for Sky News’ team in Ukraine. Dinara holds a BA in journalism from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and a Master’s degree in media and communication from the U.K.’s Bournemouth University.

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