LIVE UKRAINE. ‘Harry Potter Castle’ goes up in flames after air raid on Odessa | War Ukraine and Russia

Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine about thirty men died while they country illegally tried to leave to avoid their military service. A spokesperson for the Ukrainian border service told the Ukrinform news agency. 24 of them died trying to cross the Tisa River on the border with Romania.

“Some died trying to cross a mountain river or cross mountains,” Andriy Demchenko said late Monday night. “A total of approximately 30 people have been killed attempting to cross the border illegally since the large-scale invasion began.”

According to Demchenko, border guards have had approximately 450 criminal groups discovers it trying to smuggle people across the border. “Attempts to cross the border illegally occur every day,” the spokeswoman said. “Most of these attempts take place outside the border checkpoints on the borders with Moldova and Romania. The largest number of attempts with forged documents is registered at the border with Poland.”

Earlier this month, Demchenko told the Ukrainian state broadcaster that an average of ten men are arrested every day entering Ukraine illegally to attempt to leave.

With few exceptions, Ukrainian men between the ages of 18 and 60 are not allowed to leave the country because martial law requires them to remain available to serve in the Ukrainian army.

Last week Ukraine adopted the Consular services for male citizens of military age suspended until May 18, criticizes Ukrainians abroad who “expect assistance from the state without helping it in the struggle for survival in the war against Russia.”

In November, the BBC said in a report based on data from illegal border crossings from Romania, Moldova, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia that almost 20,000 men have fled Ukraine since the start of the war to avoid being drafted.

Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, has made a surprise visit to Ukraine. The ‘BBC’ reports this. She is the first British royal to visit the country since the Russian invasion in early 2022. Sophie wanted to show support for the country with her day-long visit.

The British royal family has regularly been outspoken about the war in Ukraine in recent years. King Charles spoke in February of an “indescribable aggression” and an “unjust attack” by Russia, marking the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of the country. But until now, no British royals have traveled to the country at war.

During her visit, Sophie spoke to Ukrainian victims of sexual violence and abuse. The Duchess of Edinburgh also spoke to children who had been separated from their parents for a long time due to the war.

For years, Sophie has supported a British government initiative that aims to raise awareness about the way sexual violence is used as a weapon of war. The Duchess regularly attends meetings where that theme is central.

At least four people were killed in a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa on the Black Sea on Monday. 28 people were also injured. The governor of the region, Oleg Kiper, reported this on the Telegram messaging service. The governor previously said there were two fatalities.

According to Kiper, the injured include a pregnant woman and two children. Four people are said to be in critical condition.

The attack damaged residential buildings, among other things. The Ukrainian air force had recently warned of a “more difficult to intercept” missile threat.

A castle known in the region as ‘Harry Potter’s castle’ also caught fire in the attack. The fire has now been extinguished. It took the fire brigade several hours to get the flames under control.

According to Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk, Russia has a ballistic missile of the Iskander-M type with cluster bombs deployed in the attack on Odessa. Cluster munitions consist of a cluster bomb containing many smaller mini-explosives. These bombs are spread over a large area, often causing many civilian casualties.

Finnair will not fly to the city of Tartu in Estonia in the coming month because Russia is causing disruptions to the GPS system. This makes landing at the airport more difficult and sometimes impossible, according to a statement from the Finnish company. An alternative system without GPS is being developed at the airport until May 31, after which flights should resume.

Last week, two planes had to return to Helsinki due to Russian interference. Finnair reports that problems with the GPS system have increased significantly since 2022, the year Russia started the war in Ukraine. Finnair is the only airline that flies to Tartu.

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told national broadcaster EER that the Russians are carrying out a “hybrid attack” with these “deliberate actions.” “Russia knows very well that this disruption is very dangerous for our aviation and violates international treaties, to which Russia has also joined,” Tsahkna said.