Claimed image of a blaze at the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in southwest Russia after an Ukrainian drone strike, June 6, 2024
EA-Times Radio Special: Defeating Putin — Ukraine, the EU, and Russia’s Offensive
Friday’s Coverage: Russia Advances Into Key Town of Chasiv Yar
Map: Institute for the Study of War
UPDATE 1752:
Russian occupiers seized the house of Ukrainian singer Jamala, who won Eurovision 2016 with her song “1944”, in Crimea.
Occupying authorities had announced plans to seize the property and assets of 110 Ukrainian individuals and legal entities who supposedly “carry out unfriendly actions towards Russia”.
They opened a criminal case against Jamala, putting her on the wanted list for spreading “fake information about the Russian Armed Forces”.
The singer posted on Instagram:
They took the house!…They are taking what my parents lived for. What they worked so hard on and built with their own hands, sweat, and blood. They took it not even from me, but from my parents.
All I can do is not stay silent. I will not be silent.
She added that the invaders searched through her parents’ belongings and family archives: “If there is justice in the world, Russia will answer for everything. For all our tears, for our relatives and friends, for our homes, for our land.”
UPDATE 1433 GMT:
UK military intelligence notes that Russian authorities removed several Virtual Private Network applications from the local version of the App Store this week.
Russian media reported that the State security service FSB issued a demand for telecom operators to stop providing Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Telephony services. The FSB declared the step was for “fraud prevention”.
Removal of VPN apps began soon after Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor obtained power to block access to VPN service,s without reference to a court, in March 2024 if they had “content illegal in Russia”.
UPDATE 1424 GMT:
Claimed footage of the aftermath of Ukrainian drone strikes on two oil deports in southwest Russia on Friday night:
Russian media: Footage of the aftermath of a Ukrainian drone strike on an oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar region. pic.twitter.com/dPdx9q9Ix9
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) July 6, 2024
UPDATE 1417 GMT:
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hsa posted about the scale of Russia’s bombardment of civilians:,/p>
Our people continuously suffer from Russian terror. This week alone, Russia has used over 600 guided aerial bombs, more than 60 “Shahed” drones, and nearly 40 missiles of various types.
We have significantly strengthened our air defense shield this week, thanks to Germany and… pic.twitter.com/g5BghBfjGB
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 6, 2024
UPDATE 1034 GMT:
At least 12 civilians were killed and 50 injured by Russian attacks across Ukraine in the past 24 hours.
In the Donetsk region in the east, at least 11 people were slain and 43 wounded.
Three of the fatalities were in the frontline town of Chasiv Yar. Five people were killed and eight were injured by two guided bombs on Selydove, west of Russian-occupied Donetsk city.
A 32-year-old woman was slain and 20 civilians wounded by three guided bombs on the village of Komar to the southwest. Thirteen private houses, four shops, two residential buildings, and two infrastructure facilities were damaged.
Other casualties were reported in the Dnipropetrovsk and Kherson regions.
Ukrainian air defenses downed 24 of 27 Iran-type attack drones launched by Russia overnight.
ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine’s drones, trying to hinder Moscow’s 28-month invasion, have struck more oil depots inside Russia.
Depots in the Krasnodar region in southwest Russia are burning after the strikes on Friday night. The global satellite fire monitoring system of the US space agency NASA showed blazes at the sites in Pavlovskaya and Leningradskaya.
Russian officials said a fuel storage tank was afire at Pavlovskya, and acknowledged the blaze in Leningradskaya. They said a cellular communications tower was also hit.
A refinery in Russia's Krasnodar region is still being extinguished after a UAV attack
Meanwhile, residents report problems accessing YouTube – the service does not work without a VPN. pic.twitter.com/22btYPOFMa
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) July 6, 2024
While Russia is pursuing a months-long offensive to seize more territory in Ukraine, the Ukrainians have been persistently attacking oil refineries, including six successful strikes within a week this spring. They are also targeting naval and air assets, and supply and logistics points supporting the invasion.
At one point in April, Russian oil output was down 14% because of the attacks.