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Russian forces launched another drone attack targeting Ukraine's southern oblasts overnight on Oct. 1. Ukraine's air defense downed at least 15 drones over Odesa and Mykolaiv regions, Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson of Ukraine's Southern Operational Command, said on air.
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U.S. President Joe Biden signed a law averting a government shutdown that was set for midnight, according to the White House. Biden said that although the bill does not include financial assistance for Ukraine, he expects Speaker Kevin McCarthy "will keep his commitment to the people of Ukraine and secure passage of the support needed to help Ukraine at this critical moment."
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Following a passage of a bill to avoid a government shutdown, top U.S. Senate leaders issued a rare bipartisan statement affirming their commitment to Ukraine. They expect the Senate will work "to ensure the U.S. government continues to provide critical and sustained security and economic support for Ukraine."
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At least four explosions were heard in Kharkiv, city Mayor Ihor Terekhov said via his official Telegram channel in the early hours of Oct. 1. Two explosions were also reported in the city of Snihurivka in Mykolaiv Oblast, according to regional authorities.
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"Odesa is a beautiful historic city. It should be in the headlines for its vibrant culture (and) spirit," Borrell wrote on Twitter. "Instead, it marks the news as a frequent target of Putin's war."
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According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, he and Slovak Defense Minister Martin Sklenar discussed cooperation with Slovakia regarding the Ukrainian military's needs, the situation at the front line, and de-mining.
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Among other capabilities, the alliance will eventually pave the way for Ukraine to localize production of licensed foreign weapons on Ukrainian soil, said Andriy Yermak, head of the president's office. During his recent visit to Washington, Zelensky and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed to have their teams hammer out a roadmap for this kind of localization.
11:21 AM
The ministry reported that, as Russia was attacking Ukraine's ports on the Danube river, air alert sirens were activated in the nearby Romanian cities of Tulcea and Galati as radar systems detected an unsanctioned object heading towards the latter in Romania's airspace.
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What we know about the missile that likely destroyed Dnipro apartment block

by Igor Kossov January 16, 2023 11:36 PM 3 min read
A Soviet Kh-22 Burya anti-ship missile, now being used by Russia to attack civilian targets in Ukrainian cities. (hat Suckr verlassen)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Russia brought down a section of a large residential building in Dnipro on Jan. 14, burying people under the rubble. At least 40 civilians were killed and 76 were wounded. Thirty remain missing, as of publication time.

As brutal as Russia’s war in Ukraine has been, it’s not often that so much damage and killing of civilians is done in one strike. Previous cases when large apartment buildings like this were completely destroyed include the bombing of Borodyanka in March and a missile strike on Chasiv Yar in July.

The Ukrainian Air Force claimed the weapon used in Dnipro was a Soviet-era Kh-22 Burya (Storm), also known by its NATO reporting name, AS-4 Kitchen.

A total of five of these repurposed anti-ship missiles were used in the Jan. 14 mass strike, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. The Air Force said the country has no way to intercept this kind of weapon at this time.

Here is what we know about the Kh-22.

The Soviet Union developed the missile to destroy enemy ships and aircraft carriers with its heavy conventional warhead — or wipe out entire carrier battle groups, when armed with its nuclear one.

The conventional warhead can also do devastating damage to buildings on land, as seen in Dnipro on Jan. 14 and Sept. 29, as well as in Kremenchuk on June 27, where a Kh-22 destroyed a shopping mall, killing at least 20 people and injuring about 60 more.

While powerful, the Kh-22s were never the most precise or reliable when it comes to targeting, according to Ukrainian military analytics center Defense Express.

Designed to be launched from missile carrier aircraft, the system was put into service in the 1960s but reportedly made its combat debut during the first phase of the full-scale invasion into Ukraine in spring 2022. In 2016, Russian forces adopted an upgraded version, the Kh-32, which has also been used against ground targets in Ukraine.

Various estimates give the weapon a top speed of over Mach 4, about 5,000 kilometers per hour. Though it has wings, somewhat like a cruise missile, its operation is much closer to that of a ballistic missile, according to Defense Express. When attacking, the Kh-22 or Kh-32 climbs to a high altitude, then arcs down and dives onto its target, making it hard to stop.

An unverified video supposedly showing the Jan. 14 attack in Dnipro, that has been circulating on Ukrainian and Russian Telegram channels, shows the missile approaching the apartment block at a very steep angle.

Cruise missiles can be brought down by damaging their propulsion, guidance or aerodynamics, which Ukrainians can do with the air defense systems they currently have. But that’s not enough to stop a missile that has already spent its fuel and is now plunging down from two dozen kilometers in the sky almost directly above the target, Defense Express wrote.

The Air Force’s Jan. 15 acknowledgement that Ukraine has no way to intercept Kh-22s goes against some prior claims by Ukrainian officials and military that they shot down individual Kh-22 missiles. One such claim was reportedly made by the Air Force in May and another by the 101st Brigade for the Protection of the General Staff in a July Facebook post that is now deleted.

The MIM-104 Patriot system, pledged by the United States, can intercept ballistic weapons like Kh-22s, Kh-32s and Iskanders. According to Washington, Ukraine will receive some Patriot systems in the first quarter of 2023.

According to Ukraine’s January estimates, Russia currently has 162 Kh-22 and Kh-32 missiles.

Ukraine war latest: Death toll in Russian strike on apartment building in Dnipro rises to 40
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