Daily Flyer - May 26, 2023
A voice of Ukraine to the West
Ukraine's Supreme Court elects new head
Stanislav Kravchenko was elected as the new head of Ukraine's Supreme Court on May 26 after former Head Vsevolod Kniaziev was charged with corruption.
Kravchenko secured the position for a four-year term after receiving the votes of 108 out of the 148 judges present.
Kravchenko has previously been accused of failing to declare some his assets, while the Public Integrity Council judicial non-government organization ruled that he lacks credibility due to his previous work.
Ukraine's Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) charged former Supreme Court Head Vsevolod Kniaziev with corruption on May 16. That same day, 140 out of 142 judges present voted to dismiss Kniaziev from his position.
The charges stem from allegations that Kniaziev accepted a bribe in exchange for issuing a court decision that favored Ukrainian oligarch Kostiantyn Zhevago.
If convicted, Kniaziev may face up to 12 years in prison.
Russia uses drones to identify air defenses for ballistic missile strikes
The Russian military is using drones like the Shaheds to distract and identify Ukraine's air defense systems, military spokesperson Natalia Humeniuk said on television on May 26. Subsequently, Russia tries to target them with ballistic missiles, according to Humeniuk, head of the press center of the Southern Operational Command.
“(Russians) try to attack in waves precisely to see where the defenses are and where to hit next,” Humeniuk said.
When the air defenses reveal themselves by attacking expendable, cheaper drones, Russia will then try to use more valuable ballistic missiles to destroy them.
On May 22, the Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat said that at the moment, Ukraine’s air defenses lack sufficient tools to counter ballistic missiles.
Advanced systems like Patriot are too few to cover the entire territory of the country. In its latest massive attack against Ukraine, Russia launched 17 different types of missiles and 31 drone strikes, Ukraine's Air Force reported on May 26.
Russian missile strike on Dnipro clinic kills 2, injures 30
A Russian missile strike that hit a clinic in Dnipro on the morning of May 26 killed at least two people and injured 30, according to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Serhii Lysak.
The strike also damaged a nearby veterinary clinic, according to Lysak. One of the killed persons was a 69-year-old man who was simply passing by in the area. Another one was found dead under the rubble of the veterinary clinic.
According to the governor, there are two children among the wounded. The boys, aged three and six, have been hospitalized. Doctors assessed their condition as moderately severe. In total, 21 people are in medical care, Lysak wrote.
Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets reported at 11.30 a.m. that there were four people missing following the strike on Dnipro. Lysak reported the missile strike against Dnipro’s medical facility earlier on May 26.
The number of victims might be updated in the next hours.