December 7, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

The fire at an airport in Russia's Kursk region alleged by Russian officials to have been caused by a Ukrainian drone strike on Tuesday has been extinguished, a senior local official said on Wednesday. 

Over 200 people from several departments battled for more than a day to put out the fire, the governor of the Kursk region, Roman Starovoyt, said in a statement published on his Telegram.

On Tuesday, the governor alleged a drone attack hit an oil tanker near Kursk airfield. 

Kursk is located about 90 kilometers (nearly 56 miles) from the Ukrainian border. On Monday, Russia blamed Ukrainian forces for two attacks on airfield across Russia. 

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has offered no comment on the explosions. Officially, the targets are well beyond the reach of the country’s declared drones. However, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted a cryptic message on Tuesday, hinting at the possibility that Kyiv was indeed behind the attacks.

The United Nations High Commission for Human Rights published a report on Wednesday that looks at 441 killings of civilians in the northern Ukrainian regions of Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy. 

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said the report details the murder of civilians for “cutting firewood and buying groceries” in the regions previously occupied by Russian forces following the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. 

The Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy regions were taken back following a Russian withdrawal in late March. 

Türk just concluded a four-day visit to the Ukrainian capital.

“There are strong indications that the summary executions documented in the report constitute the war crime of [willful] killing,” he added.

In his statement, Türk listed the levels of assistance needed for the Ukrainian people, including 17.7 million people requiring humanitarian assistance and 9.3 million in need of food and livelihood assistance. 

One-third of the population have been forced to leave their homes, according to his statement, while 7.89 million have fled the country and 6.5 million have been internally displaced. 

Türk also said in the statement that he spent some of his visit in a bomb shelter on Monday as Russia launched another wave of missile attacks. He also visited the towns of Bucha and Izium.

Türk also noted the impact that Russia’s attacks on critical infrastructure will leave on the Ukrainian people.

“I fear that there is one long, bleak winter ahead for Ukraine. The consequences of the war on the enjoyment of human rights for people in the country have already been devastating, and the prognosis is very worrying,” he said.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has been named as TIME Magazine's Person of the Year. The 44-year-old, a former comedian, actor, writer and producer, has been president since 2019.

‘Stretch,’ an American fighter serving in the International Legion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, has been honored for his services to Ukraine by President Volodymyr Zelensky.

In a video released by Zelensky’s office, the Ukrainian leader is seen visiting soldiers in a military hospital in Kyiv on Tuesday evening. The footage shows him awarding medals to soldiers, including 'Stretch'.

In a very short exchange, the first name of the American is revealed to be Eric.

“Eric, thank you so much for your bravery,” Zelensky says in the video, to which Eric replies: “it is my honor. Thank you, sir.”

A statement from the International Legion said: ‘Stretch’ “got a medal from the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in recognition of his heroic efforts on the Ukrainian frontlines. Victories do not come cheap. They do not come easy. But our soldier's efforts are appreciated and awarded with official recognition.”

It was not immediately clear what the title of the honor was, what it was for or what injury the American had sustained.

Repair work on critical energy infrastructure facilities across Ukraine continued Wednesday, in an effort to fix the ongoing power deficit caused by Russian strikes.

“The gradual restoration of the power system after the missile attacks continues…The situation in the east of the country remains difficult -- last night, the enemy one more time shelled several infrastructure facilities, while the temperature in the region reached -17 C,” Ukrenergo, Ukraine's state-run energy operator said Wednesday.

“Repair crews are working to eliminate the consequences of the missile attack in Kyiv and Odesa regions, restoring power supply to the regions under backup schemes,” it continued, adding that there was still a “significant deficit” in the nation’s power system, triggering limits on consumption.

Some background: On Monday, Russia unleashed a wave of drone and missile attacks across Ukraine, targeting the country's energy infrastructure. Ukraine has been facing a wide assault on critical infrastructure and power sources since early October.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes caused extensive power outages in several regions, including Kyiv and Odesa.

Power deficit: Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that after Monday's attacks "power engineers promise to eliminate the consequences" in the coming days.

"At the same time the power deficit in the energy system will remain. Currently, it is 19% of the forecast consumption."

On Tuesday, Ukraine’s health ministry announced the suspension of planned surgeries in an effort to insulate the medical system from the impacts of rolling power outages.

"They will be carried out when the situation around the supply of electricity stabilizes…all emergency medical care will be provided to patients in full," the statement said.

Andrii Yermak, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, has said that Russia is resorting to using “cheap mopeds” -- referring to Iranian ‘Shahed’ drones -- in attacks against Ukraine. Ukrainians refer to 'Shahed' drones colloquially as 'mopeds' because of the noise they make in flight.

Writing on Telegram, he said that Russia is having to use Iranian drones because its missiles are “running out” and that the strikes are not having the “desired effect of terror” intended.

Yermak noted that Ukrainian forces have “worked out” how to combat the drone. He barbed that Russia has been left behind, saying that Ukraine is "smarter, stronger more creative and modern.”

On Wednesday Russia launched a series of drone attacks on Ukraine using Iranian made ‘Shahed’ drones. Ukrainian forces claimed to have shot down 14 out of 136 ‘Shaheds’ launched.

Some context: A variety of Iran-made drones have been used by Russian forces in Ukraine, often in attacks on infrastructure, with the 'Shahed' one of the most widely used models. In November, Iran acknowledged that it had sent a limited number of drones to Russia in the months before the start of its invasion of Ukraine.

The Kherson and Donetsk regions are under shelling, according to both regional heads.

In Kherson, Yaroslav Yanushevych, head of the Kherson region military administration, said Kherson had been shelled 51 times and that “Russo-fascists fired at peaceful settlements of the region with artillery, MLRS, tanks and mortars.”

He added that there were also civilian casualties: 2 dead and 1 wounded.

In Donetsk, Pavlo Kyrylenko, head of the Donetsk region military administration, said that while there were no fatalities, 3 were wounded in Bakhmut, Pavlivka and Kurakhove on December 6. He added there is “destruction” including of infrastructure facilities in Kurakhove.

The general staff of the armed forces said they had repelled a number of attacks from the Russians, including in the Donetsk region in Verkhnokamianske, Spirne, Yakovlivka, Bakhmut, Bila Hora, Kurdiumivka, Novobakhmutivka, Maryinka and Novomykhailivka. 

Four people were killed and 19 others injured after Ukrainian forces shelled Donetsk on Tuesday, according to a statement from Russia-backed officials in the occupied city.

No further information about the victims was released by the Russian Joint Centre for Control and Coordination in Donetsk and CNN cannot independently verify its claim. 

Pro-Russian authorities in the eastern Ukrainian city reported their third day of shelling by Kyiv's forces Tuesday. 

Some context: Donetsk has been occupied by pro-Russian separatists since 2014, however Ukrainian forces remain within a few miles of its limits. In October, Russia’s legislature approved President Vladimir Putin’s decision to annex four parts of Ukraine, namely Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Luhansk, despite not having full control of those regions. The move is illegal under international law.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces shot down 14 Iran-made attack drones overnight Tuesday into Wednesday, it said in its daily operational update. 

CNN is unable to independently verify the Ukrainian military’s claim. 

On Tuesday, a Western official told CNN that Russia had “run out” of Iranian attack drones in recent weeks, but the Kremlin was anticipating a “resupply.” The official was speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the issue. 

Some context: A variety of Iran-made drones have been used by Russian forces in Ukraine, often in attacks on infrastructure. The Shahed is one of the most widely used models. In November, Iran acknowledged that it had sent a limited number of drones to Russia in the months before the start of its invasion of Ukraine.