“Today the world was able to see again how false all the words spoken at the highest level in Moscow are,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message released in the evening.
“They talked about a supposed ceasefire… but the reality is that Russian bombs continue to hit Bakhmoud (east, editor’s note) and other Ukrainian positions,” he added, adding that “the only solution is to expel the Russian occupiers.” From Ukrainian lands”.
A Moscow-ordered cease-fire that began at noon Friday ended at midnight Saturday (10:00 p.m. HB), after Ukraine accused the Russian military of not respecting it, which in turn accused Russia of blocking its application, forcing the Ukrainians to retaliate. .
Kyiv immediately rejected the Kremlin’s announcement, which Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhaïlo Podoliak on Saturday described as “fake”, saying it was a ploy to buy time. Washington, Paris, London, Berlin and the European Union have also condemned Moscow’s “hypocrisy”.
Journalists in Chasiv Yar, in the east of Ukraine, have actually observed continuous bombings throughout the morning.
And in Bagmouth, the heart of the fighting to the north, hours after Russia imposed a unilateral ceasefire, AFP heard artillery fire on both sides of the front on Friday.
These scenes were less intense compared to previous days.
According to the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office, two people were killed and 13 wounded on Friday in Bagmut, a city largely destroyed by fighting and both sides facing heavy losses.
Also in Kherson
According to Ukrainian authorities, Russian troops shelled the Kherson region (south) on Friday, killing one rescue worker and injuring seven others.
In the Zaporijjia (south-east) region, a UN mission delivering humanitarian aid to Orikhiv “came under enemy fire”, according to local administration.
The two countries, which have been at war since February 2022, celebrated the Orthodox Christmas holiday, which is the majority faith in Russia and Ukraine, on Saturday. January 7 of the civil (Gregorian) calendar corresponds to December 25 of the old Julian calendar, which the Orthodox Church has continued to follow since the 16th century, but not the Catholics.
On the Russian side, Vladimir Putin attended a religious service alone at the Kremlin church at midnight on Friday, abandoning his practice of attending worship in public, in the provinces or in Moscow’s suburbs.
In a message released by the Kremlin on Saturday, he sent his greetings to Orthodox Christians.
Church organizations “support our soldiers” fighting in Ukraine, the Russian president said.
On the Ukrainian side, hundreds of faithful attended a historic service on Saturday at the famous monastery of the Lavra of the Caves of Kew, formerly under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate, but in December passed into the bosom of the Independent Ukrainian Church.
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