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Kramatorsk, Snake Island and Donetsk under fire
Summary
A look back at 7 July 2022, when Russian strikes hit Kramatorsk and rival claims emerged over Snake Island, as civilians were urged to leave Donetsk Oblast.
What was happening on the Donbas front on 7 July 2022? Russian forces launched airstrikes on Kramatorsk, in Donetsk Oblast, and the city's mayor reported casualties. The attack came as the Battle of Donbas continued to take a toll on civilians across the region.
The same day brought conflicting accounts from the Black Sea. Russia said it had fired missiles at Snake Island and killed an unspecified number of Ukrainian troops. Ukraine denied that there had been any casualties.
Shelling in the days before
The strike on Kramatorsk followed several days of intense fire in Donetsk Oblast. On 6 July 2022, Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported that heavy Russian shelling had killed at least twelve civilians and injured 25 others.
On 5 July 2022, Ukraine said two civilians had been killed in a Russian missile attack on Sloviansk, also in Donetsk Oblast. That same day the governor of the oblast urged civilians to evacuate as Russian forces advanced. Around 350,000 civilians had already left.
Reactions beyond the front line
The war was also shaping decisions in neighbouring states. On 6 July 2022, Latvia announced plans to reintroduce conscription, which had been abolished in 2006, as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The final decision rested with the Saeima, the country's parliament.
There was also a note of recognition for Ukraine away from the battlefield. On 5 July 2022, the International Mathematical Union awarded the Fields Medal to four mathematicians at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Helsinki, among them Maryna Viazovska of Ukraine. The others honoured were Hugo Duminil-Copin of France, June Huh of the United States and James Maynard of the United Kingdom.
The picture on 7 July 2022
Taken together, the events of those days showed a war focused on Donetsk Oblast, where cities such as Sloviansk and Kramatorsk came under missile and air attack and civilians were being told to leave. Meanwhile, the dispute over Snake Island showed both sides offering opposing accounts of the losses, with Russia claiming casualties and Ukraine denying them.
