Ukraine ‘will not forgive’ Russia’s attacks against innocent people: President

By Gozde Bayar

ANKARA (AA) – Ukraine “will not forgive” Russia’s attacks against innocent people, the country’s president said late Sunday.

“We will not forgive the missile that our air defense shot down over Okhmatdyt (Children’s Hospital) today...We will not forgive the shooting of unarmed people,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message on Telegram.

“Today is Forgiveness Sunday…But we will not forgive the executions of unarmed people. The destruction of our infrastructure…Hundreds and hundreds of victims. Thousands and thousands of suffering. And God will not forgive. Not today. Not tomorrow. Never. And instead of forgiveness, there will be a Day of Judgment. I am sure of this,” he added.

Regarding Russia's statements about bombing only defense industry enterprises, he said it was "deliberate murder.” He added that most of these enterprises were built decades ago, during the time of the Soviet Union.

He also said he decided to give the title of "Hero City" to Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Mariupol, Kherson, Hostomel and Volnovakha, which resisted Russian attacks, and to reward the administrators of some cities that resisted the attacks with the “Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky,” a Ukrainian military award named after Bohdan Khmelnytsky, Hetman of the Ukrainian Cossacks.

The award was established on May 3, 1995 by Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe.

At least 364 civilians have been killed and 759 others injured in Ukraine since Russia launched a war in the Eastern European country on Feb. 24, according to UN figures, with the real toll feared to be higher.

More than 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries, according to the UN Refugee Agency.

Russia's war on Ukraine has been met with outrage from the international community, with the European Union, UK and US among others imposing a range of economic sanctions on Moscow.