Ukrainian forces have raised the national flag in the settlement of Robotyne in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, Kyiv’s military said on Wednesday, though it was not clear whether the entire community had been liberated from Russian forces.
“A historic day! Soldiers of the 47th Separate Mechanised Brigade set up the flag of Ukraine in the village of Robotyne, in one of the hottest destinations – Melitopol,” the brigade said in a post on its Telegram channel.
Ukrainian forces raise the national flag in the settlement of Robotyne, Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, in this screen grab taken from a social media video released on 23rd August, 2023. PICTURE: Telegram Valerii Zaluzhnyi/via Reuters
In a video published by General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, the Ukrainian flag is seen on a roof of a badly damaged building surrounded by burnt trees.
“A blue and yellow flag signed by the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was raised on the school destroyed by the Russian invaders on the National Flag Day!” the 47th Brigade said.
Reuters was able to confirm the location from the road’s layout and buildings’ structure seen in the video which matched satellite and file imagery of the area. Reuters was not able to separately verify the date when the video was filmed.
Kyiv seeks to recapture the strategic southern city of Melitopol as part of its counter-offensive against Russia’s full-scale 2022 invasion.
Earlier, Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said four educational workers were killed and four other people were hurt in a Russian attack on a school in the city of Romny in the country’s north-east on Wednesday.
Klymenko said the bodies of the school director, deputy director, secretary and a librarian had been pulled from the rubble by rescue workers.
He said four local residents were injured as they had been passing the school in Romny, which is part of the Sumy region.
Rescuers work at the site of a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Romny in Sumy region, Ukraine, on 23rd August, 2023. PICTURE: National Police/Handout via Reuters
Photos shared by Klymenko on the Telegram messaging app showed emergency workers carrying away a body on a stretcher. A photo released by police showed rescue workers standing in front of a devastated building and rubble.
The regional military administration said a drone fired by Russia had hit the school at 10:05am.
“The school building was destroyed, and this is just before the school year, which unfortunately will never start for some,” Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Telegram.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report. Russia denies deliberately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
– With ANNA PRUCHNICKA
