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India Today
11-07-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Ukraine war map: How Russia's drone strike strategy is evolving
Moscow has stepped up its attacks in the past two weeks, aiming to break Ukrainian morale and secure victory. But the situation on the ground suggests that goal remains Today's Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) team analysed comprehensive strike data from ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data) and other media reports to understand how the scale of the war has intensified over the past two weeks. advertisementData reveals a consistent upward trend in the number of drone and missile strikes across March, April, May, and June 2025, indicating an escalation in the intensity of the conflict during these months. On July 9, Russia launched 728 drones and 13 missiles in a single day — the largest airstrike since the war began in February 2022. Ground reports analysed by the American non-profit Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and other publications also indicate Russia's intensified offensive over the past 30 days. ISW assesses that Russian forces seized a total of 498.53 square kilometers in May 2025 and 466.71 square kilometers in June this pace, Russia is advancing by just 15 square kilometres a day — roughly the size of Delhi's international airport. So far, it already controls 113,888 square kilometres of Ukraine's total 603,000 square kilometres. To capture the remaining 80% of Ukraine, experts say it would take another 89 years at the current pace. However, Russia's rate of advance has changed during the war, depending on several factors — such as how many offensives are active on different parts of the front, the time of year and weather conditions, and the strength and supplies of both Russian and Ukrainian citing two US officials, Reuters reported on July 9 that the United States has resumed military aid deliveries to Ukraine, including shipments of 155mm artillery shells and Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets. Following the July 4 attack, Russia launched another large-scale missile and drone strike on the night of July 9–10 that heavily targeted Kyiv City, resulting in civilian casualties and significant damage to civilian infrastructureadvertisementThe Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces launched 397 Shahed-type strike drones and decoy drones from the directions of Bryansk, Kursk, and Oryol cities; Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Krasnodar Krai; and Millerovo, Rostov Oblast – of which about 200 were Shahed-type Ukrainian Air Force reported that Ukrainian forces shot down 178 total projectiles, including 164 drones, all eight Iskander-M ballistic missiles, and all six Kh-101 cruise missiles, and that 204 drones and missiles were "lost" or suppressed by Ukrainian electronic warfare (EW) systems. Ukrainian officials reported that the main targets of the Russian strike series were Kyiv City and Kyiv Oblast and that Russian strikes also damaged Chernihiv, Sumy, Poltava, Kirovohrad, and Kharkiv oblastsA Russian military blogger linked to the Kremlin said that Russian forces are using new strike tactics by launching large attacks focused on one or two main cities. According to the blogger, Ukraine's air defences can't handle such large and concentrated attacks. Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson Colonel Yuriy Ihnat added that Russia is launching drones and missiles from different directions and heights, making it harder for Ukraine to defend against strike packages increase Ukraine's dependence on Western air defense systems like the U.S. Patriot, as well as support for developing and producing its own interceptor protect its cities, Ukraine will require both domestic and partner-provided air defense systems integrated into a unified defense network.- EndsMust Watch
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Myanmar's most wanted – and how they could be brought to justice
It was hoped that the earthquake that struck Myanmar seven weeks ago, flattening cities and killing thousands, would lead to respite from the country's civil war. Instead – despite a purported ceasefire – the military regime has ramped up its attacks, killing hundreds of civilians in recent weeks, according to a United Nations tally. Last week at least 20 pupils and two teachers died when military jets bombed a school in Sagaing region, just 65 miles north-west of the quake's epicentre. The youngest victim was seven. 'Parents of the deceased children were consumed by profound sorrow, frantically searching and embracing the lifeless bodies of their sons and daughters,' a doctor at the scene, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Telegraph. 'We will remember their names, their faces, the vibrant spark that was extinguished,' they said. 'We will demand justice, not just for these lost children, but for all the innocent lives caught in this brutal war.' But what might that justice look like – and who could be held responsible for the atrocities committed in Myanmar? Myanmar has been in the grip of a civil war since a coup in February 2021, when Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the army, led a coup against Aung San Suu Kyi's democratically elected government, triggering widespread protests and a violent crackdown. At least 81,000 people have since died, according to ACLED (Armed Conflict Location and Event Data), which collects data on conflicts around the world. Figures compiled by NGOs estimate at least 6,600 fatalities were civilians. While some of the patchwork network of opposition groups have also been accused of atrocities, human rights groups have accused the junta of abuses including mass killings, arbitrary arrest, and torture. They also say the military has used 'scorched earth' tactics in some regions, and deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure to squash opposition. One of the most devastating examples of this was in Pa Zi Gyi village in 2023, when an airstrike killed 155 civilians. 'They're targeting civilian infrastructure including hospitals, religious sites and of course schools,' said John Quinley, a director at Fortify Rights, which has documented war crimes across the country. 'This is a deliberate attack on the civilian population to wreak havoc and to try to instil fear amongst any resistance to the military,' he said. Lawyers, the UN and human rights organisations have identified dozens of individuals responsible for atrocities committed by the military regime during the civil war. Although there are currently no international court cases against these figures for crimes committed after the coup, many of those implicated are also being investigated for their role in widespread and systematic attacks on the Rohingya people in 2016 and 2017. The Muslim ethnic minority group, who predominantly lived in the western Rakhine state, faced a brutal crackdown that involved mass killings, sexual violence and forced displacement. A UN fact-finding mission has since said the military intended to perpetrate a genocide. Cases related to the crimes against the Rohingya are currently unfolding in the International Criminal Court (ICC), the International Court of Justice, and under universal jurisdiction laws in Argentina. There are two figures at the top of the list of Myanmar's most wanted. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, 68 studied law at Yangon University in the 1970s – avoiding the anti-military protests that characterised that period in Myanmar. He entered the Defence Services Academy in 1974, and it was here where, according to the New York Times, he earned a reputation as a bully. Three years later, after he graduated, his military career began with assignments leading the elite light infantry divisions. These units were often deployed in the restive border regions to quell opposition from ethnic minority groups. As a young commander he spent time in Myanmar's Shan state, Rakhine and Chin – some of the places where the insurgency today is strongest. Min Aung Hlaing rose through the ranks to become a special operations commander and then, in 2011, he was picked by the former military ruler Than Shwe to become commander-in-chief of the armed forces. In 2021, he led the coup and bestowed civilian titles including prime minister on himself, to go alongside his military rank. Min Aung Hlaing has ultimate command and control over the police and security forces, and is wanted in connection to crimes against humanity. He has also been held responsible for genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya population in 2016 and 2017. In November 2024, the ICC's chief prosecutor said he had requested an arrest warrant for Min Aung Hlaing, for crimes against humanity over the alleged persecution of the Rohingya. It is not clear if that warrant has yet been issued. But in February 2025, a federal court in Buenos Aires also issued an arrest warrant, with charges including a genocide against the Rohingua. The UK, United States, Canada, Australia, Switzerland and the European have imposed sanctions on Min Aung Hlaing, including bans on travel and financial transactions and asset freezes. Vice Senior General Soe Win graduated from the Defence Services Academy in 1981, is considered a close ally of Min Aung Hung. According to Fulcrum, he served in Kachin state, a border region, for the Northern Command. He became commander of the unit in 2008, and later as chief of the Bureau of Special Operations he oversaw operations in Chin, Rakhine and Magway. Soe Win was promoted to Vice Commander-in-Chief in 2011, and had a position on the committee responsible for negotiating with Myanmar's many armed ethnic rebel groups. After the coup, he took on the title of deputy prime minister. He is included in the Argentinian court's arrest warrant, issued in February, and the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, and the European Union have imposed sanctions on him, including asset freezes and travel bans. The machinery of Myanmar's ruling junta is vast, and there are dozens of other officials who could one day be held responsible for its crimes. Fortify Rights and Yale Law School have identified 61 high-ranking military and police officials who could potentially be held criminally liable for crimes against humanity since the coup. Among them are General Maung Maung Aye, the Joint-Chief of staff for Myanmar's army, navy, and air force and the Chief of Armed Forces Training; General Mya Tun Oo, the Minister for Defense and member of the SAC; General Tin Aung San, Minister of Transport and Communications and member of the SAC; and General Maung Maung Kyaw, a key member of the SAC. The Myanmar military regime did not respond to questions from The Telegraph. Previously, the SAC has denied accusations that it has committed crimes against humanity. After the arrest warrant for Min Aung Hlaing was issued, the junta said the country is not a member of the ICC and does not recognise its statements. There are several ongoing attempts to bring key members of the SAC to justice in international courts, although this is a slow process with significant hurdles. So far, for instance, the ICC has only investigated atrocities linked to the Rohingya, and they were only able to do so because they fled to Bangladesh. The country, unlike Myanmar, is a member of the court and therefore within ICC jurisdiction. A trial is some way away – and while prosecutors have asked for a warrant for Min Aung Hliang, it's not yet clear if one has actually been issued. But the arrest of Rodrigo Duterte – the former president of the Philippines, who now sits in a jail in The Hague ahead of an ICC trial – has raised hopes that one day Min Aung Hliang could be next. 'The overarching point is that international justice is usually a slow and winding path,' said Richard Horsey, a Myanmar researcher at the Crisis Group think-tank. 'But the fact that it's slow and winding doesn't mean that it never reaches its destination. We can see that from the fact that Duterte is currently sitting in The Hague. And who would have expected that? There are other examples – Pinochet, for instance. Politics changes and as politics change, new possibilities open up.' In the meantime, rights groups and the UN's Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) are continuing to document abuses, which could be used in future cases. And in Argentina, where a genocide case has been filed under international jurisdiction rules, a court issued an arrest warrant for 25 people in February. This includes key military officials but also, controversially, Aung San Suu Kyi. The de facto head of government when the military attacked the Rohingya, she has been accused of doing too little to prevent atrocities. Now under house arrest in Myanmar, she remains a wildly popular figure at home and has denied culpability. Tun Khin, a president of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK – which has been key in bringing about the Argentinian case, said 'powerful testimony' from seven survivors led to the arrest warrants. But he added that the process has now stalled, as no one has been apprehended. 'Unfortunately it is now a slow process, as [those implicated] need to be present for the trial to happen,' he said. 'I believe one day that can happen, but we don't know when.' Mr Quinley added that, in the short term, it is likely that some justice will be achieved through the courts set up by the ethnic organisations that control parts of the border regions. 'At a state level, there are now governance structures in Myanmar that are quite sophisticated, that are able to prosecute perpetrators for crimes,' he said. 'These domestic justice mechanisms… are doing an amazing job, in the midst of being bombed.' Protect yourself and your family by learning more about Global Health Security Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
