Easter truce breaks down
A Kremlin-declared Orthodox Easter ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine collapsed within hours, with both sides accusing the other of widespread violations and the fighting continuing. Russian reports cited more than a thousand drone and shelling attacks shortly after the truce began, while Ukrainian sources said Moscow violated the pause thousands of times and reported multiple civilian casualties and injuries; the two sides still carried out a prisoner exchange. (reuters.com) (kyivindependent.com) (theguardian.com)
A Kremlin-declared Orthodox Easter ceasefire in Ukraine unraveled within hours, with Russia and Ukraine each reporting hundreds or thousands of violations. (apnews.com) Russia’s Defense Ministry said on April 12 that Ukrainian forces had attacked Russian positions more than 1,000 times with drones and shelling after the truce began. Russian regional officials in Kursk and Belgorod said strikes and drone attacks injured five people near the border. (yahoo.com) Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia violated the pause 2,299 times in the first 15 hours, including 28 assault operations, 479 shelling attacks, 747 kamikaze-drone strikes and 1,045 first-person-view drone attacks. The Kyiv Independent reported that four civilians were killed and 35 injured across several Ukrainian regions over the previous day. (kyivindependent.com) The ceasefire was brief by design: a 32-hour halt ordered by President Vladimir Putin for Orthodox Easter, running from Saturday afternoon, April 11, through the end of Sunday, April 12. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine would mirror Russian actions, observing silence where it held and responding where attacks continued. (cbsnews.com) The episode landed in the fourth year of Russia’s full-scale invasion, after repeated failed attempts at local pauses, humanitarian corridors and holiday truces. The latest exchange of accusations underscored how little trust remains between the two militaries even during a major religious holiday observed in both countries. (apnews.com) Even as the truce faltered, the two sides still completed a prisoner exchange. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that Ukraine and Russia swapped 246 prisoners each, in a deal mediated by the United Arab Emirates. (rferl.org) Russian officials said their forces were observing the ceasefire and blamed Ukraine for the fighting. Ukrainian officials said Russian troops kept attacking along the front and used the truce announcement to shape the narrative while combat continued. (usnews.com, kyivindependent.com) By Monday, the ceasefire had expired and the war had returned to its usual pattern of mutual strikes, battlefield claims and contested casualty reports. The Easter pause ended much the way it began: announced from Moscow, challenged from Kyiv, and broken on the ground. (msn.com)
