The Washington Post | The Washington Post | Getty Images Ukraine’s National Police announced it has uncovered 34 locations where it believes Russian forces have illegally detained and tortured people. “Thirty-four locations where the Russians illegally detained and tortured civilians were found in the recaptured regions: Kharkiv region – 24, Kherson region – 3, Kiev region – 3, Sumy region – 2, Donetsk, Chernihiv regions – 1 each, The press service of National Police posted on Telegram, according to a translation by the Ukrinform news agency. A man claiming to be a former detainee tortured with electric shocks by the Russian military inspects the debris inside a damaged Russian command center on September 29, 2022 in Izium, Ukraine. On September 9, Ukrainian armed forces struck the center known as a prison and torture chamber. Paula Bronstein | News Getty Images | Getty Images Ukrainian police and international investigators continue to uncover and document evidence of many alleged war crimes by Russian occupation forces, including widespread incidents of rape and torture and mass killings that Ukraine says are war crimes. Russia says it is targeting civilians despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary with daily shelling of residential buildings and civilian infrastructure. Medical examiners collect evidence at the Regional Police Station allegedly used by Russian occupiers for torture, in Balakliia, Kharkiv Region, northeastern Ukraine. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty Images As of Oct. 31, Ukrainian police have opened 40,742 criminal proceedings for alleged crimes committed by Russian servicemen “and their accomplices” in Ukraine, Ukrinform reported. — Holly Elliott
Russia moves large ballistic missile to Belarus to send West ‘a message’, UK says
Russia may have transferred large ballistic missiles to Belarus as a “message to the West”, the UK Ministry of Defense said on Tuesday. In an intelligence update on Twitter, the ministry said Russia is likely to have deployed AS-24 Killjoy missiles (air-launched ballistic missiles) to Belarus “mainly to send a message to the West and portray Belarus as increasingly complicit in war”. Belarus is a strong ally of Russia, although it is widely seen as a vassal of Moscow. Although not directly involved in the Ukraine conflict, it has aided Russia during the war and missiles have been fired into Ukraine from Belarus. Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) shakes hands with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko during their meeting in Sochi on February 22, 2021. ALEXEI DRUZININ | AFP | Getty Images The ministry said Moscow has a “very limited stockpile” of AS-24 Killjoy missiles and “continues to expend its advanced long-range munitions against targets of limited operational importance.” However, basing such weapons in Belarus would give Russia “a little added advantage in terms of attacking additional targets inside Ukraine.” The UK said evidence that Russia was deploying such missiles in Belarus emerged after images showed two MiG-31K Foxhound interceptors “almost certainly parked at Belarus’ Machulishchi airfield on October 17, with a large canister stored near a protective Earth. “It is possible that the canister is related to the AS-24 Killjoy ballistic missile, a large munition that the MiG-31K variant is adapted to carry.” He noted that Russia had not previously deployed these weapons in Belarus, and while it has occasionally fired these weapons during the war in Ukraine, “stockpiles are likely very limited.” “It continues to expend its advanced long-range munitions against targets of limited operational importance,” he noted, and with a range of more than 2,000 kilometers, the Killjoy missile base in Belarus “gives Russia little additional advantage in terms of attacking additional targets inside Ukraine. “ — Holly Elliott
Ukraine sees more bombing overnight after wave of rocket attacks
Ukraine reported more shelling in several areas overnight, as well as heavy fighting along the front line in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, a day after it witnessed a wave of attacks in several areas. Shelling has been reported in the Dnipropetrovsk region in southeastern Ukraine, and there were reports of shelling in the southern port city of Mykolaiv overnight, demolishing half an apartment building and killing one resident, Reuters reported. A Ukrainian missile is fired from a vehicle of the 53rd Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Donetsk Region on October 28, 2022. Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Meanwhile, Ukraine’s armed forces said in an early morning briefing that fighting remained intense on the front line in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. He said on Facebook that the Russian army is “concentrating its efforts on limiting the defense forces of Ukraine in certain directions and is not stopping offensive operations in the directions of Bakhmut and Avdiivka” in Donetsk. “The enemy continues to shell units of the defense forces along the contact line, fortify the lines in separate directions and carry out aerial reconnaissance. They are hitting critical infrastructure and civilian homes, in violation of international humanitarian law, laws and customs of war,” said the Tuesday of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Andriy Kovalev. People use touch on their phones to view a weapons exhibition in near-darkness on October 31, 2022 in Kyiv, Ukraine, after rocket attacks disrupted power and water supplies. Ed Ram | News Getty Images | Getty Images A wave of missile attacks targeted Ukraine’s critical energy infrastructure on Monday, with the major cities of Kyiv and Kharkiv among those targeted. Hundreds of thousands of people were left without electricity and water for hours, although Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said water supplies had been restored on Tuesday morning. — Holly Elliott
Zelensky confirmed Ukraine’s support for the Black Sea Wheat Initiative in a call with the UN Secretary General
“The morning is difficult. We are dealing with terrorists. Dozens of missiles, Iranian Shahid,” Zelensky wrote on his official Telegram account, referring to the Iranian-made Shahid drones increasingly used by Russian forces. Ukrinform | Future Publishing | Getty Images Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he spoke with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres about Russia’s decision to suspend its role in the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Zelensky said he confirmed Ukraine’s support for the deal, which reopened three Ukrainian ports for agricultural exports, during his conversation with Guterres. “We are ready to remain guarantors of global food security,” Zelensky wrote on Twitter. The Ukrainian leader also said he had informed Guterres of Russia’s missile attacks and called for a “tough” UN response. — Amanda Macias
UN warns of rising food prices as Black Sea Grains Initiative stalls
Farmers are seen harvesting wheat in Druzhkivka, Ukraine on August 7, 2022. Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images The Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development said the FAO Food Price Index has been in decline for six consecutive months, partly due to the Black Sea Grains Initiative. The Black Sea Grain Initiative, a UN-backed deal brokered in July, eased Russia’s naval blockade and saw the opening of three key Ukrainian ports. Since August, nearly 400 ships carrying a total of 9 million metric tons have left Ukrainian ports for international destinations. “The Food and Agriculture Organization’s food price index has fallen for six consecutive months by about 16%. According to World Bank models, this decline may have prevented more than 100,000,000 people from falling into poverty,” said Rebecca Greenspan before the Security of the United Nations. Council. Greenspan added that uncertainty over the continuation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative is now causing food prices to rise again. “Just today, wheat futures rose by over 6%,” he said, calling on all parties to make “every effort to continue and expand the Black Sea Wheat Initiative.” — Amanda Macias
Turkey calls for ‘common sense’ on Black Sea Grains Initiative at UNSC meeting
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a joint press conference with Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita in Chisinau, Moldova, May 9, 2022. Vladislav Culiomza Reuters Turkey’s UN representative called for “common sense” at a UN Security Council meeting on the suspension of Russia’s participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative. “Today we call for common sense, common sense in recognizing the need for restraint, common sense in supporting our responsibility to protect the world’s most vulnerable populations who have turned to the United Nations,” said spokesman Feridun Sinirlioğlu. He argued that the deal should be “decoupled from developments on the ground” as it was done in good faith and should continue that way. He also praised the achievements of the Initiative, which has moved more than 9.5 million metric tons of grain and food and reduced global food prices since it was agreed in July. “The Black Sea Grains Initiative marked a turning point in how we put the needs of the furthest behind, even in times of war,” Sinirlioğlu said. “Turkey hopes that reason will prevail and the Black Sea Wheat Initiative will remain intact and in place,” he said. Turkey has been in contact with both Ukraine and Russia to ensure the continuation of the agreement, according to Sinirlioğlu. Russia suspended the…
