February 25, 2022

Another 1986-scale Chernobyl disaster 'extremely unlikely', experts say

Source: BBC News

A radiation spike has been recorded around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Data from monitoring stations suggests the levels of radiation

increased about 20-fold on Thursday.

“Around the reactor you would normally receive a dose of around 3 units (called microsieverts) every hour - that’s jumped to 65,” explains Sheffield University nuclear materials expert Prof Claire Corkhill.

“That’s about five times more than you would get on a transatlantic flight.”

The most likely explanation, she says, is increased movement of people and vehicles in the 4,000 square km Chernobyl exclusion zone has kicked up radioactive dust that is usually undisturbed on the ground.

Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-europe-60517447

February 25, 2022

Ukrainian president says 'enemy sabotage groups' have entered Kyiv as forces close in

Source: Washington Post

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says "enemy sabotage groups" have entered Kyiv, the capital, as Russian forces close in.

Two loud booms were heard from the city at around 4 a.m. local time. In an address to Ukrainians, Zelensky did not specifically say Russian forces had entered Kyiv, but his reference to "sabotage groups" was interpreted as a sign that the city was in peril. He also said the country has been left to fight alone by NATO despite appeals for help from the alliance. But he remained defiant and urged Ukrainians to fight on.

President Biden has announced sweeping sanctions against Russia for its full-scale attack, saying in a Thursday White House address that the aggression "cannot go unanswered." The sanctions, coordinated with allies, target Russia's elites, its largest state-owned banks and companies throughout its economy.

A senior U.S. defense official said Russia's moves were "clearly designed to take key population centers" and topple Ukraine's democratically elected, pro-Western government.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/02/24/russia-ukraine-attack-news/

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Meanwhile CNN is reporting:

A senior U.S. defense official said Russia's moves were "clearly designed to take key population centers" and topple Ukraine's democratically elected, pro-Western government.

Officials in the country believe Russia's plan is to overthrow the Ukrainian leadership and install a pro-Russian government.

In a video statement late Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky said he believes "enemy sabotage groups" had entered Kyiv and that he was their No. 1 target. His family, he said, was the second target.

"They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state," he said, adding he was staying in the government quarter.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/24/europe/ukraine-russia-invasion-thursday-intl/index.html

BBC is reporting similar information

February 24, 2022

Hundreds of people detained in anti-war protests around Russia, according to independent monitors

From CNN's Nathan Hodge in Moscow

As of Thursday evening Moscow time, at least 850 people have already been detained in at least 44 cities across Russia, independent monitoring group OVD-Info reported.

Russia bars demonstrations without a permit, but Russians may stage individual, single-person protests.

Authorities on Thursday warned citizens that participating in anti-war protests could lead to prosecution and criminal charges.

https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-24-22-intl/index.html

Just now the Washington Post is reporting "More than 1000 people were arrested in 47 cities across the nation, according to rights group OVD-Info."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/02/24/russia-ukraine-attack-news/

February 24, 2022

CNN: Russian riot police tell protesters to disperse in Moscow

From CNN's Anna Chernova and Nic Robertson

Russian riot police are urging protesters to leave Pushkinskaya Square in Moscow, saying over loudspeakers that the “[protest] action is unauthorized.”

CNN’s Nic Robertson and team on the ground have witnessed people being detained by police. Some are carrying signs with messages, including multiple signs saying “no to war.”

Russian authorities on Thursday warned citizens that participating in anti-war protests could lead to prosecution and criminal charges.

https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-24-22-intl/index.html

February 24, 2022

Horrifying Photos Show Immediate Effects Of Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine

Huffington Post has posted a large number of photos of the invasion. Go to the link below


Firefighters at a building in the eastern Ukraine town of Chuguiv on Thursday as Russian armed forces try to invade Ukraine from several directions. ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images


https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ukraine-russia-bombings-photos_n_6217953de4b0f800ce1d42e7

February 24, 2022

Putin doesn't care about peacekeeping in Ukraine

He cares about keeping a piece of Ukraine.

February 24, 2022

CNN: Map of locations where Russian attacks have been reported

https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-24-22-intl/index.html

February 24, 2022

Ukraine's president says Russian forces are attempting to seize control of Chernobyl nuclear power p

Source: CNN

From CNN’s Anastasia Graham-Yooll in London and Gul Tuysuz in Kyiv

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted that Russian forces are attempting to seize control of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.

“Russian occupation forces are trying to seize the Chernobyl [Nuclear Power Plant]. Our defenders are sacrificing their lives so that the tragedy of 1986 will not be repeated,” Zelensky tweeted.

"“This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe,” he added. "

...

“In 1986, the world saw the biggest technological disaster in Chernobyl,” the ministry tweeted. “If Russia continues the war, Chernobyl can happen again in 2022.”

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-24-22-intl/index.html

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Let them have Chernobyl. They caused the disaster.

February 24, 2022

7 dead in Russian missile strike near Kyiv, Ukrainian authorities say

CNN

From Tim Lister in Kyiv

Ukrainian authorities say seven people have been killed and 17 wounded in a missile attack on a military area northeast of the capital of Kyiv.

The mayor of the city of Brovary, Ihor Sapozhko, said the attack occurred at 2:30 p.m. local time. Brovary has a Ukrainian Special Forces base.

It was one of several Russian strikes close to Kyiv on Thursday.

https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-24-22-intl/index.html

February 24, 2022

It's Estonian Independence Day today. Will it be the last one?

Today, February 24th, is the 104nd anniversary of the day the people of Estonia declared independence from Russia.

They fought hard for that freedom, after nearly 200 years of czarist rule. They lost that freedom again during WW2, and regained in in 1991. But now that Putin has attacked Ukraine, will he also go after Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania? They are EU and NATO members, but will that suffice to deter him? I don't know the answer.

For background, Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians are not Slavic people such as Russians, Ukrainians, Poles and others. Estonians and their language are closely related to the Finnish and more distantly to Hungarians.

Unlike nearly all other languages in Europe, the Finno-Ugric languages are not part of the large Indo-European family of languages, but are of separate origin. Latvian and Lithuanian are Indo-European languages.

All in all, the Estonian people suffered close to 700 years of occupation and rule by foreigners, beginning with a papal order to attack and Christianize them. (Ironically, Estonians are considered the least religious people in the world now.) The Estonians lost to the Danish and the Teutonic knights, Germany purchased Estonia from them and sent in the so-called Baltic Germans to seize land, create manors, and rule over a population reduced to serfdom.

Baltic Germans, the descendants of these original occupiers, controlled the land for centuries, even though Estonian rule passed from Germans and Danes to Swedes and Poles, and finally to the Russians in 1721. Baltic Germans in essence ran the country while native Estonians remained serfs. When Russia took over Estonia in 1721 the serfs, who had some rights, were reduced to slaves. Under the Russians, Estonians could be bought and sold, traded, beaten, and put to death for minor offenses until some time in the early to mid-19th Century. They could not own property, and before about 1835, could not even have last names.

On a personal note, I found a record in the Estonian online archives noting the sale of two of my ancestors from one manor to another.

After declaring independence in 1918, they got to enjoy freedom for a mere 20 years, before being occupied by the Germans and then forcibly annexed into the Soviet Union. Large numbers of Estonians were arrested, murdered or deported to Siberian labor camps. The USSR sent hordes of Russians to occupy Estonia. About 300,000 Russians still live there, providing Putin with a convenient pretext to invade and "defend" them, should he decide to do so.

(Again on a personal note, my parents and grandmother fled Estonia during WW2 and managed to make it to the U.S. after living in an Allied displaced persons camp in Germany for some years. At some point in the war my father was captured by Nazis and was going to be executed with some others, when their captors fled before the Allied advance.)

"Within six years of the first Soviet troops arriving in Estonia, the country lost about 25% of its population to execution, imprisonment, deportation, and escape," according to the website "The Singing Revolution."

(The following paragraphs in quote marks are from that web site)


"Most people don’t think about singing when thinking about revolutions. But in Estonia song was the weapon of choice when, between 1987 and 1991, Estonians wanted to end decades of Soviet occupation.

"The Singing Revolution is the name given to the step-by-step process that led to the reestablishment of Estonian independence in 1991. This was a non-violent revolution that overthrew a very violent occupation. It was called the Singing Revolution because of the role singing played in the protests of the mid-1980s. But singing had always been a major unifying force for Estonians while they endured fifty years of Soviet rule.The Estonians and Latvians formed a long human chain across the two countries to protest Soviet occupation."

"Momentum and courage grew. The Estonians calculated that as long as they shed no blood, Gorbachev wouldn't’t be able to send in tanks to quash demonstrations. Such blatant censorship would be an international embarrassment to his carefully cultivated image. So people pushed Moscow as far as they could, taking great care to stay non-violent.

"Matters came to a head in 1991 when Moscow hard-liners staged a coup d’état and placed Gorbachev under house arrest. As troops rolled into Estonia to quell any independence-minded thinking, Estonians decided to escalate their bid for freedom. Unarmed people faced down soldiers and tanks, while political leaders assembled to declare Estonia’s independence."

Unfortunately, the Russians, particularly Putin, have never given up the notion that they own Estonia and its Baltic neighbors.

https://singingrevolution.com/about-the-history