August 12, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

By Heather Chen, Jack Bantock, Hafsa Khalil, Aditi Sangal and Adrienne Vogt, CNN

Updated 3:44 a.m. ET, August 15, 2022
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4:41 p.m. ET, August 12, 2022

1 dead and 2 injured following rocket attack on city of Zaporizhzhia, city official says

From Daniela Gonzalez-Roman and Petro Zadorozhnyy

A woman who was injured in a rocket attack on Zaporizhzhia earlier on Friday died on her way to a hospital, according to Secretary of the Zaporizhzhia City Council Anatoly Kurtev. 

Kurtev said two other people were injured with shrapnel wounds and are currently receiving medical assistance at a hospital.  

“We express out condolences to the relatives and friends of the deceased,” said Kurtev. “Russians will pay cruelly for every lost life and every tear,” he added. 

To note: The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is not located in the city of Zaporizhzhia, but in Enehodar. The cities are both in the Zaporizhzhia region.

4:08 p.m. ET, August 12, 2022

Cargo ship arrives in Ukraine to deliver vital grain to Ethiopia

From Petro Zadorozhnyy

The Brave Commander arrives to the sea port of Pivdennyi in the Odesa region of Ukraine on Friday, August 12.
The Brave Commander arrives to the sea port of Pivdennyi in the Odesa region of Ukraine on Friday, August 12. (Serhii Smolientsev/Reuters)

A cargo ship called the Brave Commander arrived at the port of Pivdennyi in Ukraine on Friday. It will soon deliver grain to Ethiopia, according to Oleksandr Kubrakov, Ukraine's minister of infrastructure.

The Liberian-flagged ship will carry more than 23,000 tons of grain to East Africa and is chartered by the UN World Food Programme, according to Ukraine's Ministry of Infrastructure.

Reuters reports it's the first Africa-bound ship to carry grain from Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

Some background: Conflict in the north and a drought in the south have pushed about 20 million people to a vulnerable and precarious humanitarian situation in Ethiopia, which, according to the United Nations, has been made worse by the war in Ukraine. 

"The ripple effect of the war in Ukraine is set to exacerbate Ethiopia’s food security crisis,” the UN said in a report published in June. “With over three-quarters of [World Food Programme] and government wheat – a country staple – coming from Ukraine or Russia, the precarious situation there is threatening to push its cost, as well as that of fertilizer, beyond the means of millions of Ethiopian farmers."

4:13 p.m. ET, August 12, 2022

At least 2 dead and 13 injured in Kramatorsk shelling, according to regional official

From CNN's Petro Zadorozhnyy

Debris is cleared next to a crater caused by a rocket strike on a house in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, Friday, August 12.
Debris is cleared next to a crater caused by a rocket strike on a house in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, Friday, August 12. (David Goldman/AP)

At least two people were killed and 13 civilians were injured in an attack on Kramatorsk in eastern Ukraine on Friday, according to Pavlo Kyrylenko, the Ukrainian head of the Donetsk regional military administration.

The shelling damaged at least 20 residential buildings and sparked a fire. A rescue operation is underway.

On Thursday: The Ukrainian military repelled assaults by Russian forces in the east, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in an update Thursday evening. 

“The occupiers unsuccessfully tried to improve the tactical position” near the city of Kramatorsk, but they were “pushed back,” it said. The Ukrainian military said intense shelling and airstrikes were felt across the entire eastern front line. 

1:43 p.m. ET, August 12, 2022

Ukraine says Russian forces are making gains near the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut 

From CNN's Nic Robertson, Kareem Khadder in Dnipro and Petro Zadorozhnyy

The Ukrainian military says Russian forces are making gains near the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut.

“In the direction of Pokrovske — Bakhmut, the enemy had partial success and is trying to gain a foothold,” said general staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in a statement on Friday. 

A CNN team in the town of Bakhmut heard grad, artillery, anti aircraft gunfire, heavy machine gun fire and small arms fire. Some civilians still remain in the town where most shops are closed and some streets are blocked by cement blocks and other barricades. The CNN team saw military convoys heading into the town as ambulances drove out. 

The Ukrainian military also said that it was able to repel Russian advances toward the town from different directions. 

“With offensive and assault actions, the Russian occupiers unsuccessfully tried to break through the defense of our units and advance in the direction of the settlements of Spirne, Ivano-Dariivka, Vyimka, Yakovlivka, Kodema, Vershyna, and Zaitseve. They suffered losses and left chaotically. Fighting continues in some areas,” the military said. 

The Ukrainian military said intense shelling and airstrikes were felt across the entire eastern frontline. 

12:35 p.m. ET, August 12, 2022

Russian journalist who protested Ukraine war live on TV placed under house arrest

From CNN's Anna Chernova, Kara Fox and Sugam Pokharel  

Former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova, stands inside a defendants' box during a court session over charges of "discrediting" the Russian army, in Moscow, on August 11.
Former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova, stands inside a defendants' box during a court session over charges of "discrediting" the Russian army, in Moscow, on August 11. Natalia KOLESNIKOVA/AFP/Getty Images

A Moscow court has placed former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova under house arrest for two months pending a trial related to her anti-war protest in July, the press service of the court said in a statement Thursday.

According to the statement, Ovsyannikova has been charged with spreading fake news about the Russian military and has been placed under house arrest until October 9. 

The offense is punishable by up to 10 years in prison by the Russian law.

Ovsyannikova, who previously worked as an editor for Russian state TV Channel One, took a dramatic stand against Russia's war in Ukraine during a live broadcast in March when she broke into the studio and appeared behind a news anchor with a sign that said: "NO WAR."

She previously told CNN she had already received three fines for a total sum of 120,000 rubles (about $1,970) for her anti-war statements, including for allegedly “discrediting” the army in her Facebook post she published on Russia Day.

During her hearing, Ovsyannikova held a sign saying, "May the dead children haunt you in your dreams,” in a protest against Russian military actions in Ukraine.   

Videos on social media showed Ovsyannikova, a former Russian state TV editor, holding the hand-written sign in Russian from inside the glass cage of the courtroom. Security personnel put their hands on the glass trying to block the sign from being visible. 

Ovsyannikova’s lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov confirmed to CNN that she held up the protest sign on Thursday in the court.

11:27 a.m. ET, August 12, 2022

Satellite image shows burnt remains of Russian military tent targeted by Ukraine strike at Zaporizhzhia plant

From CNN's Paul P. Murphy 

A destroyed Russian tent is seen in a Planet Labs satellite image of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant from Aug. 7, following a targeted strike by the Ukrainian military.
A destroyed Russian tent is seen in a Planet Labs satellite image of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant from Aug. 7, following a targeted strike by the Ukrainian military. (Planet Labs)

The burnt remains of a Russian military tent, targeted by a Ukrainian military strike, can be seen in a Planet Labs satellite image of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant from Aug. 7. 

The military strike occurred on July 19, according to the mayor of Enerhodar, the town where the nuclear power plant is located. At the time, Mayor Dmytro Orlov said an unexplained incident caused at least nine Russian soldiers to be injured and killed an unknown amount of soldiers. 

The same area is pictured on July 3 in a satellite image from Planet Labs.
The same area is pictured on July 3 in a satellite image from Planet Labs. (Planet Labs)

On July 22, Defence Intelligence of Ukraine released a video that showed a military strike among an area of tents on the Zaporizhzhia plant compound. The tents — as well as the Ukrainian strike — were located just under 1,000 feet from one of the nuclear reactors.  

The video showed at least three tent structures were burned. The Ukrainian intelligence agency claimed the strike killed three Russian soldiers and injured 12. 

9:02 a.m. ET, August 12, 2022

Ukrainian officials expect Russians to begin trials of prisoners of war this month

From Tim Lister and Olga Voitovych 

Ukrainian officials say they expect the Russians to begin trials for Ukrainian prisoners of war later this month, with the first tribunals taking place in Mariupol.

Vadym Boichenko, the mayor of Mariupol, said Friday at a media briefing that the "Russians plan to hold a trial of Ukrainian prisoners of war in Mariupol on the Independence Day of Ukraine, August 24."

"The occupiers are turning the Mariupol Philharmonic Hall, the pearl of the city, where only festive events took place, into a place of trial for our prisoners of war and civilians," he said.

Boichenko said, "There are different dates, but they are preparing. In this way, the invaders try to create 'victories' for their consumers, since they have no real victories at the front."

Officials of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, which is supported by Russia, have also indicated that trials will begin soon.

"The timing of the tribunal for the Ukrainian military and militants will be determined after the completion of the comprehensive work of the investigators," Denis Pushilin, the head of the DPR, said on Russian television earlier this week.

"Comprehensive preparations for the tribunal are under way ... I won't say for sure about the timing, because it still depends on the investigators. As soon as the investigators give the go-ahead," Pushilin said.

He also said that an air defense group has been strengthened in the area of the isolation blocks where Ukrainian prisoners of war are kept.

A correspondent with the Russian Defense Ministry's channel Zvezda reported from outside the Philharmonic Hall in Mariupol this week, noting that a "huge metal frame is being built next to the Philharmonic. This is a future hangar, where prison wagons with Azov prisoners of war will presumably come by."

10:21 a.m. ET, August 12, 2022

It's mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here's what you need to know

The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in southeastern Ukraine is at threat of running afoul of radiation and fire safety standards after subsequent Russian bombing.

Here are the latest developments:

  • Zaporizhzhia Plant: After attacks on the nuclear power plant last week, the city of Nikopol — across the Dnipro river from the plant — was again hit by Russian rockets overnight. On Friday, Ukraine's Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi said there was "no adequate control" over the plant, which has been operating at reduced capacity since been overtaken by Russian forces in March. According to Ukrainian nuclear power operator, Energoatom, the plant is now operating "with the risk of violating radiation and fire safety standards," due to parts of the facility being "seriously damaged during the shelling," which both countries are accusing the other for. Meanwhile, pro-Russian official Vladimir Rogov in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region administration has said that the plant may be "mothballed" so "nothing happens."
  • Grain scheduled for Ethiopia: Ukraine's Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov announced in a tweet on Thursday that a ship taking 23,000 tons of grain to Ethiopia would be arriving in Ukraine for loading on Friday. In June, the UN said war in Ukraine worsened the humanitarian crisis in the African nation, where 20 million people are suffering the from "food security crisis."
  • Corn heads to Iran and Turkey: According to Turkey's Defense Ministry, two ships carrying corn left Ukraine on Friday carrying over 63,000 metric tons.
  • Protesting Russian journalist charged: Former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova has been placed under house arrest until October 9 pending a trial related to her anti-war protest in July, an offense punishable by up to 10 years. In March, Ovsyannikova stood behind a news anchor during a live broadcast with a sign that read: "NO WAR."
  • Ukraine fights eastern attacks: The Ukrainian military has repelled Russian assaults in the east, "pushing back" forces near the city Kramatorsk, according to its General Staff, adding that they were also successful in defending attacks towards Bakhmut and Avdiivka.