A relative places candies on the grave of a victim of Russia’s occupation of Bucha, near Kyiv, in Ukraine, March 31, 2024 (Vadim Ghirda/AP)

Sunday’s Coverage: Damage to Energy Infrastructure from Russia’s “Vile Strikes”

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1420 GMT:

Japan has given a $118 million grant to Ukraine’s Finance Ministry for healthcare and housing projects.

The funding, through World Bank initiatives, will expand the range of healthcare services, improve access to medical care, and rebuild housing infrastructure.

UPDATE 1016 GMT:

The Ukraine Air Force says air defenses downed 2 of 3 Iran-type drones launched by Russia overnight.

The Energy Ministry said a drone damaged equipment at a power substation in the Zaporizhzhia region in southern Ukraine.

UPDATE 0958 GMT:

After meeting his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing, France’s Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné said:

We expect China to send very clear messages to Russia. We are convinced that there will be no lasting peace if it is not negotiated with the Ukrainians. There will be no security for Europeans if there is no peace in accordance with international law.

UPDATE 0747 GMT:

Ukrainian defenders have reportedly repelled Russia’s largest mechanized assault in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine since October.

Multiple Ukrainian and Russian sources said Russia carried out its first battalion-sized attack since the opening stage of its campaign to seize the town of Avdiivka last autumn.

The Russians finally overran Avdiivka in mid-February, in only the second capture of a town or city by Moscow’s forces since July 2022. The offensive has then occupied several villages in Donetsk, but has not broken through Ukranian lines despite an advantage of about 6:1 in artillery.

In last week’s attack, the Russian 6th Tank Regiment deployed 36 tanks and 12 BMP infantry fighting vehicles near the settlement of Tonenke, west of Avdiivka. Geolocated imagery published on Sunday shows many destroyed and damaged Russian armored vehicles and tanks along a road northwest of Tonenke.

A Ukrainian serviceman said 12 Russian tanks and eight IFVs were demolished.

The loss would be one of Russia’s largest since Ukrainian forces destroyed almost 50 Russian tanks and more than 100 armored vehicles on October 19-20 near Avdiivka.

UPDATE 0728 GMT:

Russian attacks killed at least five civilians across Ukraine on Sunday.

In the Donetsk region in the east, two people were slain amid Russian shelling of 14 towns and villages. In the neighboring Kharkiv region, a man was killed in the town of Borova.

In western Ukraine, two bodies were pulled from rubble after cruise missile strikes on infrastructure in the Lviv region.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukrainians marked the second anniversary of the liberation of the Kyiv suburb of Bucha on Sunday, remembering the hundreds of civilians killed in cold blood by occupying Russian forces in March 2022.

A memorial was held at the monument with the names of the 509 victims identified so far.

See also Ukraine War, Day 40: 100s of Civilians Killed by Russia’s Forces in Bucha

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told those assembled:

This is a war for our state’s right to exist, as well as for everyone’s right to life. This is a war for the dignity of our people and every nation seeking its own destiny.

The bodies of our people, which were found on the streets of Bucha, demonstrated that no one in the world can stay away from this battle. Because it is here, in Ukraine, through the defense of our people, our lives, and our state, that humanity is prevailing.

To unleash such aggressions against others, Russia first destroyed its own morality and turned violence and hatred into its ideology. Such systems do not simply stop. They are brought to a stop by force. Unity stops them. Determination and an understanding of what they want to destroy is what stops them. I thank everyone in the world who really helps us.

Earlier in the day, Zelenskiy posted best wishes for Easter, “It is a holiday that reminds us of the power of the spirit that will not allow darkness to prevail. It will not allow the will to be overshadowed. It unites families, nations, and continents.”

After the visit to Bucha and nearby Irpin, he said in a video statement: