Notices by Tim Mak (timkmak@journa.host)

Here's what we're reading today:

In #Vovchansk, #Kharkiv region, where active hostilities are taking place, the first executions of civilians by #Russian troops have been reported, police said. A man who tried to flee on foot was killed. Civilians are also being captured.

Evacuations had been taking place, but now the Russian military, trying to gain a foothold in the city, is not allowing locals to evacuate.

https://www.dw.com/uk/klimenko-vijska-rf-berut-v-polon-ta-rozstriluut-civilnih-u-vovcansku/a-69095571

Using a loophole in sanctions, #Turkey is disguising Russian oil as its own and exporting it to the #EU, bringing billions in profits to #Russia, Politico writes.

Between February 2023 and February 2024, Turkey increased its purchases from Russia by 105% compared to the previous 12 months. During the same period, Turkish fuel exports to the EU increased by 107%.

https://www.politico.eu/article/how-turkey-become-vladimir-putin-pit-stop-sell-camouflage-fuel-eu/

Here’s what The Counteroffensive is reading today:

The Former British SecDef says the average age for Ukrainian troops on the offensive is 40.

He suggests that it may be time for Ukraine’s own general mobilization before Putin can churn out more armies.
#Ukraine
#Russia

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/01/ben-wallace-ukraine-counteroffensive-succeeding/

Hi folks — there’s no issue of The Counteroffensive today. Unfortunately I’ve been hospitalized in Kyiv due to a bad infection.

I’m on the mend. However, it’s unclear whether our insurance will cover this stay.

Have some of you tried Threads? What do you think is the advantage or disadvantage of that over mastodon?

Are you finding Mastodon to be less vibrant/active?

I’m worried that we are not getting as much engagement on our Ukraine war reporting as we used to.

We’re trying to decide which social media platforms to continue posting on, given how much effort it takes to replicate across all of them.

If you want to send a signal to us that we should keep posting here, will you sign up for our newsletter? http://Counteroffensive.substack.com

I’m only asking Mastodon users today so we can gauge impact.

Explosions were heard in Moscow early Tuesday a.m. in an apparent Ukrainian retaliation, the first serious barrage of strikes on the Russian capital since Vladimir Putin authorized the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Read more at: http://Counteroffensive.news

In the early morning hours, the experience of those in Moscow mirrored that of people in Kyiv for the first time: explosions, air defense firing, and general chaos among the civilian population.

From videos and photos now being shared widely on Russian and Ukrainian social media, the damage inflicted by the attacks are not severe. But there are obvious psychological impacts from the attacks — it’s a signal that the war can and will reach the residents of Moscow as well.

While the Ukrainian government has not claimed responsibility, the attacks in Russia come immediately after the head of GUR, the military intelligence arm of the Ukrainian government, promised retribution for the constant attacks on Kyiv.

https://t.co/gceBlHJ98R

The governor of the Moscow Region, Andrey Vorobyov, confirmed the attacks on his official Telegram channel:

And this from the mayor of Moscow, who said in a subsequent post that two people sustained minor injuries:

The strikes in Moscow are sure to exacerbate divisions already within Russian society about the execution of the war.

The head of the Russian mercenary outfit Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, issued a furious, epithet-laden video cursing out the Russian Ministry of Defense:

We weren't planning on publishing an issue of The Counteroffensive today.

But the development and escalations were so dramatic that Ross and I quickly filmed a ten minute update of the overnight developments, and pushed out a special edition in the early AM.

It's a bit of an experiment, the first paid post we have had on http://Counteroffensive.news -- a NEWSFLASH urgent update for our paid subscribers.

Our paid posts are rare — but a rule we’ve set is that if we faced violent risk to write it, we would like to get paid for it!

Please sign up for a subscription to support us! Your subscription pays for our fuel, our body armor, and our food — everything we need to keep reporting.

Something big is happening out here: http://Counteroffensive.news

Good morning to readers; Kyiv remains in Ukrainian hands.

Huge escalation overnight as Russian launched three rounds of attacks in Kyiv over a 24 hr span.

Meanwhile the FIRST EVER barrage of strikes happened in Moscow.

Let's get into the latest dramatic developments.

Good morning to readers. Kyiv remains in Ukrainian hands.

This week I walked along with Svetlana Izmailova, whose son Volodymyr died last year at the age of just 37...

She was protesting in Kyiv on her deceased son's behalf.

Volodymyr had fought with the Ukrainian military since right after the Maidan Revolution of 2014 sparked the first battles with Russia in the eastern areas of Ukraine.

And he continued fighting through the full-scale Russian invasion last year.

But because he was not killed in combat, Svetlana and her family get no social security as a result of her son’s death.

She and the other demonstrators were chanting to ensure that the Ukrainian government recognizes military veterans of the last eight years for public payments.