This is the touching moment a Ukrainian rescuer saves a cat from the rubble after Russia hit an apartment building in Zaporizhzhia with the missile.
The footage shows the emergency services worker holding the cat in one hand before lying down on his stomach and handing it to a colleague.
The colleague wraps it in some material and can be seen making his way away from the destroyed building as the footage ends.
The images were obtained from the State Emergency Service of Ukraine on Friday, 3rd March, along with a statement saying: “When every life matters. Four-legged hostages of war also suffer from the consequences of Russian aggression.
“During the day, during which the rescuers were dealing with the consequences of the rocket attack in Zaporizhzhia, they managed to save three cats. Two of the cats were given to volunteers.
“And the characteristic kitty from the video is currently undergoing inpatient treatment at a veterinary clinic.”
In a separate statement, the emergency services said that they had shifted through and dismantled over 100 tonnes of rubble, rescuing 11 people and removing four bodies from the scene.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February 2022 in what the Kremlin is still calling a “special military operation”. Today marks the 373rd day of the full-scale war.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between 24th February 2022 and 3rd March 2023, Russia had lost about 151,370 personnel, 3,405 tanks, 6,673 armoured combat vehicles, 2,402 artillery units, 484 multiple launch rocket systems, 247 air defence systems, 301 warplanes, 289 helicopters, 2,061 drones, 873 cruise missiles, 18 warships, 5,281 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 230 units of special equipment.
Russia has claimed that its casualties have been much lower but provides infrequent updates on its latest figures.
The United States is reportedly set to announce a new package of military aid made up primarily of ammunition and worth USD 400 million for Ukraine, today, Friday, 3rd March.
The US is also reportedly hosting exercises geared towards war planning in Germany for Ukrainian officers to assist them regarding the battlefield decisions they will have to make in the next phase of the war.
US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz are set to meet in Washington today to discuss aid for Ukraine, with one senior US administration official saying that they may also discuss concerns that Beijing might provide military aid to Russia.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov have met for the first time since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Blinken told Lavrov to “end this war of aggression”, adding in a briefing after the talks that he had also said that Russia needs to reconsider its “irresponsible decision” and “engage in meaningful diplomacy that can produce a just and lasting peace”.
He also said that he told Lavrov that the US would push for the war in Ukraine to end with diplomatic means that Ukraine agreed to.
Ukrainian forces are reportedly continuing to put up fierce resistance in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, which is under constant attack from Russian forces.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Russia’s notorious mercenary Wagner group, has released images that he claims show his forces in Bakhmut. The images show uniformed men lifting the Wagner banner on top of a severely damaged building.
Russia has attacked a five-storey apartment block in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing four people and injuring eight others.
Russia has claimed that it is under attack from “terrorists” after reports emerged about alleged firefights in the Bryansk and Kursk regions. Russian media has said that the alleged firefights were the work of Ukrainian “sabotage groups”.
Ukraine has responded by calling the reports a “false flag” attack geared towards discrediting the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is reportedly planning to hold a meeting of the Security Council today.
