BREAKING: Ukraine is investigating a dam destruction as a war crime. A state of emergency has been declared after a dam in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine has been irrevocably damaged by an explosion. 📺 Sky 501 and YouTube
Watch: Swans swim through town flooded after dam blast
He also said Ukraine had started building defensive positions on the right bank of the Dnipro River and that Russia had pushed back against a Ukrainian offensive in the past three days. Asked whether he would accept that if Russia is found to be behind the attack, it committed a war crime, he said:"I'm sure that this war crime made by Ukrainian regime, made by Zelenskyy."Of course, Ukrainian regime will be prosecuted for this war crime."14:38:14As Ukrainian and some Russian-installed officials scramble to react to the dam blast, the breach has not come as a surprise to one thinktank.
Russia"has every reason" to cover its retreating forces and widen the river because Ukrainian troops would need to cross it to continue their counteroffensive, its analysis added. An adviser to the Ukrainian deputy prime minister said the consequences of the dam breach"could be on a scale like Chernobyl" - the nuclear power station tragedy in 1986.He said:"We consider this an act of terrorism - the consequences could be on a scale like Chernobyl, in terms of dealing with the power of nature and the scale of how many people should leave their homes." He denied that the breach was caused by Ukrainian shelling, calling the allegations"nonsense".
He adds:"Whereas by blowing up the dam, Russia floods the whole Dnipro downstream and stops any Ukrainian attack across the river. Works or installations containing dangerous forces, namely dams, dykes and nuclear electrical generating stations, shall not be made the object of attack, even where these objects are military objectivesYour questions answered: Can Ukraine liberate the Donbas?about the war to our senior correspondents and military experts.
In April 2014 armed Russian-backed separatists seized government buildings in the Donbas and the Ukrainian military launched an operation against them. Russia covertly sent troops, tanks and artillery into the Donbas, which helped pro-Russian forces consolidate gains made.
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