51st day of the war.
And here we go again sleeping in the corridor after hearing the sounds of new explosions.
A human gets used to everything: both to bad and good things. But it's much more easy and natural to get used to comfort and calmness. After about 10 days of silence and feeling of relative safety, it was heartbreaking to hear the sounds of explosions again.
Last night, the air raid siren map of Ukraine looked this way. We got really scared. PHOTO CREDIT
In the last couple of days, there has been a lot of news that an increased level of terrorist threat was introduced in the regions of russia bordering Ukraine in connection with "possible provocations" from Ukraine. We already know that if we hear this rhetoric, it can show us what exactly this occupying army is going to do next, and then blame Ukraine for this. It is good that we live in the 2022 century, where there are high technologies, advanced communications, advanced military and radar technologies, and simply satellite images, and it is much easier to collect information about crimes and any other military actions than before. This helps to understand the real causes of various events.
Russian authorities also claimed that Ukrainian armed forces opened fire at a border checkpoint. SOURCE
Yesterday, information appeared that allegedly "two Ukrainian helicopters invaded Russian airspace" and "carried out at least six air strikes on residential buildings." These messages came from the Bryansk region. Propaganda media in russia reported seven victims. Later, a message appeared from the Belgorod region, as if one village had been shelled "from the side of Ukraine". Based on these reports, almost all russian propaganda resources call for a tough response and furiously threaten to fire missiles at Kyiv. The Ukrainian authorities and military leadership deny their involvement in these events, and I have no reason not to believe them.
russia's provocations t the border. They don't mind hurting own people. PHOTO CREDIT
By the way, here is a conversation of a russian invader with one of his relatives intercepted by the Ukrainian Security Service. They all seem to clearly understand what is actually happenning. However, the histeria among regular russian citizens is gaining momentum, which means the goal has been achieved. More and more people there want "Ukrainian blood". Great way to justify their violence here.
Even the few people who were trying to gather for anti-war protests moscow were suppressed by police. Like in any dictatorship, dissent is strongly discouraged and penalized. As the result, there is no voiced dissent in russia at all. PHOTO CREDIT
It is no secret that russian propaganda machine has been brainwashing own people for years. In Ukraine, these channels have been blocked after russia annexed Crimea and started war in Donbas, so when Ukrainian people see extracts of russian news, it looks like a parallel reality. Here in Ukraine, we're not used to using one exclusive source of information. Sure thing, we all have our own filter bubbles, and opinions may vary, but there is always a chance to consult some global sources of info (BBC, CNN, The Guardian, The New Your Times, the Economist, Politico, Euronews, etc.). Many people, especially young people, in Ukraine speak good English and possess basic critical thinking skills. The more mind-blowing it is to see what is happening on Channel One, Russia 24 or Russia Today.
Protesters outside Meta's head office in Dublin calling on the companies to do more to tackle Russian disinformation. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA - SOURCE.
Yesterday I came across this twit by Julia Davis, a columnist for the Daily Beast, and was shocked. I don't know exactly who the people in the video are, but if they are presenting on the central state-wide channels, their words are heard and understood by millions of russians. While some world leaders are not afraid to use the word "genocide" to describe what Russia is doing against Ukraine, and some politicians are waiting for an "official legal assessment" (such as Macron), the russians themselves do not hide the fact that their goal is genocide. According to the UN Convention, the crime of genocide is an attempt to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group in whole or in part.
Screenshot from Julia Davis' Twitter account.
One positive news to wrap up today's digest: Ukrposhta (the Ukrainian state postal service) has started selling the patriotic stamp dedicated to the famous "russian warship, go f&ck yourself" phrase It's very symbolic that on the same day, this very ship, the flagship one, sinks.
The stamp features the famous insult with a soldier looking at the russian warship
Credit: AP/Ukrposhta - SOURCE