the faith thing, noticed the same myself. I try usually to doublecheck people's claims but it's not always easy, so you end up judging by the tone of the post which can be quite a mistake!
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The ISW have, after some days, come down on the side of the Russians destroying the POW barracks
ISW assesses that Russian forces were responsible for the killing of 53 Ukrainian POWs in an explosion at a Russian-controlled prison in Olenivka, Donetsk Oblast on July 28. Two US officials anonymously confirmed to Politico on August 1 that no traces of US-provided High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Ukraine’s most precise artillery system, were found at the prison site.
Since they are cautious, I think we can take it as 100% confirmed now.
Key Takeaways
ISW assesses that Russian forces were responsible for the July 28 attack on the Olenivka prison that killed 53 Ukrainian POWs; two anonymous US officials confirmed that there is no evidence that Ukrainian forces used US-provided HIMARS, some of the only munitions Ukraine has that are precise enough to do the kind of limited damage seen in satellite and other imagery, to strike the prison.
Russian forces are transferring elements of the Eastern Military District (EMD) from the Slovyansk area to support defensive positions along the Southern Axis.
Russian forces did not conduct any offensive operations north of Slovyansk or around Siversk.
Russian forces conducted unsuccessful ground assaults on settlements south and southeast of Bakhmut.
Russian proxy authorities did not claim any territorial gains near Avdiivka as Russian forces launched unsuccessful ground assaults on Avdiivka and Pisky.
Russian regional officials are reportedly failing to provide promised payments to the “Atal” Volunteer Battalion of the Republic of Chuvashia.
The Kremlin is likely prioritizing propaganda and sham referenda over the welfare of Ukrainian civilians in occupied Ukrainian territories.
Russian occupation forces are likely increasing efforts to deter and suppress partisan movements in occupied territories as partisan attacks on Russian officials and Ukrainian collaborators continue.
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Investigative journalists: Judge supported by Western experts may be implicated in corruption
Olena Zaichko, a judge at the Kharkiv District Administrative Court suspected of corruption, was approved by the Ethics Council in June as a candidate for membership in the High Council of Justice, the judiciary’s highest governing body
⚡️ Mayor: Over a thousand buildings damaged in Mykolaiv since start of Russia’s war.
⚡️ SBU: Ukraine investigates 752 cases of treason, collaboration.
Ukraine’s Security Service reported that, as of Aug. 1, the greatest amount of cases of treason and collaborationism have been opened in Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts.
▪️ Big Four oilfield services giant Baker Hughes is selling its business in Russia, the company's press office said
🗣President of Poland Andrzej Duda equated the Russians in Mariupol with the German Nazis in Warsaw: "The same atrocities"
📝Russian servicemen who refused to renew their contracts and fight against Ukraine have filed a complaint with the Investigative Committee of Russia — the head of the Interregional Association of Human Rights Organizations "Agora", lawyer Pavel Chikov
🇺🇦🇫🇷 Zelensky and Macron had a one-hour-and-a-half conversation during which the President of Ukraine asked his French counterpart to help unblock the 8 billion euros of macro-financial aid to be provided by the EU
⚡️ The United States eliminated Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was hiding in a shelter in Kabul
📣 Olaf Scholz: Germany supplies Ukraine with weapons that even the German army doesn’t have — Globe and Mail
“We delivered everything we had: anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems, mines, cannons, tons of ammunition, and non-lethal aid. Since then, we've moved on to more complex and expensive systems. Self-propelled howitzers, multiple rocket launchers, anti-aircraft systems, counter-battery radars. Some of these systems are so new that very few of them have been produced, and some of them have not even been presented to the Bundeswehr," Scholz claims.
[The map at the bottom is well worth a look]