A local resident passes by a crater caused by a Russian rocket attack, which hit several buildings … [+]
Dispatches from Ukraine. Day 593.
Local news. Odesa region. Southern Ukraine was under attack overnight into Oct. 7, with Russian missile strikes across the Odesa region. The provincial administration said port and civilian infrastructure were targeted, with a granary reported hit, as well as a guesthouse. Rescue teams treated at least four civilians injured by glass shards from the blasts.
Zaporizhzhia region. Russia’s Oct. 7 shelling of a settlement in Zaporizhzhia oblast, southeastern Ukraine, killed one woman and injured two others, Ukraine’s state emergency service reported. The attack also damaged multiple residential buildings.
Kherson region. At least 11 civilians were injured in the southeastern oblast of Kherson in overnight shelling by Russian forces on Oct. 8, the Kherson Regional Prosecutor’s Office said. Among those injured, a 9-month-old child. Law enforcement reported significant damage to civilian facilities, including apartment buildings, pipelines and municipal transport.
Ukraine continues to sharply ramp up its domestic production of military equipment, as companies reported a hundredfold increase in drone manufacture this year. In 2023, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said, more than two hundred Ukrainian companies reoriented their operations to meet the colossal demand for the unmanned aerial vehicles – game-changers in this war – according to Ukrainian armed forces. “The state is working to strengthen its defense capabilities and restore its economy,” Shmyhal said. “Approaches to the advancement of the Ukrainian defense industry were radically altered, and a modern company established on the basis of Ukroboronprom (the Ukrainian state’s defense conglomerate) in line with modern corporate governance standards.” This has significantly sped up the drone’s “journey” from the drafting board to the frontlines, the Prime Minister emphasized.
World. Kyiv is set to receive 102 million euros ($108 million) in aid from the Netherlands, the Dutch government announced on Oct. 6. This will be its third relief package to Kyiv so far this year. The largest share of the aid package will go toward export credit insurance for Dutch companies eager to invest in Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction. Close to 30 million euros ($32 million) of the package will be spent on fuel and components for the power grid to ensure Ukraine safely weathers the quickly approaching winter season. “To help Ukraine stand its ground in the Russian war, the Dutch contribution to rehabilitation and reconstruction remains crucial,” the Dutch government said in its press release. “The new support package is based on the needs assessment of the Ukrainian authorities, the World Bank and the European Commission.”
Culture. The film “How is Katya?” by Khrystyna Tynkevich won the Molodist Kyiv International Film Festival’s national feature-length competition, held at the 2023 Filmfest Hamburg in Germany. This film tells the story of a female ambulance doctor on a quest to “find justice in this flawed world,” and marks Tynkevich’s official debut as a full-length director. “The director takes us to a journey that hurts,” the jury statement reads. “Very consequent and bold. In a tempo that we can follow. Calmly the director allows the characters to fill up the space without pressure. Stated in current Ukrainian society with all the ambivalence, the tension stays until the end. We don’t want to lose hope, as the character takes the responsibility to reflect and act.”
The Ukrainian feature films “Rock. Paper. Grenade” by Iryna Tsilyk and “Luxembourg, Luxembourg” by Antonio Lukich received special mentions.
By Daria Dzysiuk, Karina L. Tahiliani