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[martinuzz]

The mayor of Mariupol desperately asks for evacuation for the about 100 thousand civilians left in Mariupol. He also says tens of thousands of civilians have been killed.

Before the war started, Mariupol had about half a million inhabitants.

[Lord Shonus]

Some pictures have emerged showing the Moskva under tow shortly before she sank, and several of the boat-touchers I'm in loose contact with have produced some analysis. The Sandbox missiles did not explode, but the imagry availabe shows a fire dangerously close to the aftmost pair on that side. Combined with the signs of heavy smoke residue around all visible portholes, the supposition is that the captain issued an Abandon Ship order fairly early on to preserve the crewmen (information now available suggest that as many as two-thirds of the crew survived) instead of trying to fight the fires, probably due to the risk of a chain detonation of the massive missile battery.

This was compounded by the location of the hits, at leas one of whivh appears (the image detail is not great) to be in the vicinity of the ship's engine room and central damage control. If the latter was put out of commission, that would cripple any effort to fight the fires just as happened to HMS Sheffield during the Falklamds Islands War. This is not a particularly lucky or unlikely hit - the Slava-class ships placed the damage control according to older design doctrine, very close to the areas of the ship that are most critical in combat and centrally located for minimum delay anywhere on board, Unfortunately, this places it right in the centroid of the radar return from the broadside, and anti-ship missiles are going to aim for the strongest part of the return.

[brewer bob]

Russia has tested its new intercontinental Sarmat missile, BBC reports.

Russia test-launches new intercontinental ballistic missile, it says

Russia says it has test-launched its new Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile.

President Vladimir Putin said it would provide food for thought for those who try to threaten Russia.

He was shown on TV being briefed by the military that the missile had been launched from Plesetsk in the country's north-west and hit targets on the Kamchatka peninsula in the far east of Russia.

and

What missile is Russia testing?

A bit more detail now on the ballistic missile which Russia says it's testing.

It's the first launch for the Sarmat missile, says the Russian Ministry of Defence - and was considered a success.

Once tests have concluded, it will become part of Russia's strategic missiles force.

The weapon can hit targets at long range using different flight trajectories, according to the Ministry of Defence.

"Sarmat is the most powerful missile with the world's longest distance to hit targets, which will significantly enhance the combat power of our country's strategic nuclear forces," it adds.

Edit:
The US doesn't consider the missile test a threat:

Russia missile test not a threat - US

Some reaction now to Russia's test of a new nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile.

The Pentagon says the move is not a threat to the US and its allies, as Moscow "properly notified" Washington of the test under its nuclear treaty obligations.

"It was not a surprise," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby tells reporters.

A little earlier, Putin said the new Sarmat missile - capable of hitting long-range targets - was food for thought for those who try to threaten Russia.

[bloop_bleep]

Russia is allegedly using bunker-busters against the Azovstal plant, the Guardian reports.

Russia has been hitting the Azovstal steel plant, the main remaining Ukrainian stronghold in the city of Mariupol, with bunker-buster bombs, a Ukrainian presidential adviser has claimed.

“The world watches the murder of children online and remains silent,” Mykhailo Podolyak wrote on Twitter.

Mariupol’s city council said on Monday that over 1,000 civilians were sheltering in basement premises underneath the Azovstal plant.

Russia has denied targeting civilians.

Uh huh. And wasn't it Il Palazzo who was so vehemently admonishing us for sensationalizing the war or daring to suggest that the depraved murderers might possibly continue their depraved murder using bunker-buster bombs or might commit genocide. Funny how well that aged isn't it.

[The_Explorer]

Well...as long as I get back from my few day vacation before anything like this is used

https://www.news.com.au/world/europe/russia-test-fires-satan-nuclear-missile-as-putin-issues-chilling-warning-to-enemies/news-story/58bfc4ef5c0d4a4e22a1297b0da9623f

That is pretty terrible if that ends up being used.

[Il Palazzo]

Uh huh. And wasn't it Il Palazzo who was so vehemently admonishing us for sensationalizing the war or daring to suggest that the depraved murderers might possibly continue their depraved murder using bunker-buster bombs or might commit genocide. Funny how well that aged isn't it.

Yes, it has aged well. And it is going to continue to age well, since it was in no way contingent on any of the claims thrown around ever turning factual.
And I don't see how they have. Like, ffs. If true (and we're unlikely to ever know), this is not genocide by any definition. It's a gross disregard for civilian collateral damage. It's horrible, horrifying, despicable, unjustifiable - but not any more than the entire war from the get go, ever since it was decided that killing a percentage of Ukrainians is an acceptable price for some vague political gains.

But you know what, go nuts. Cry wolf every day. I'm not going to spend time trying to teach you how to think straight just so that you can stop hating on the Russians a little more than they probably deserve.

[EuchreJack]

Alright folks:

NO FIGHTING IN THE WAR ROOM!

Please keep your emotional responses to this thread, where I also request that nobody call anyone else out.

My thanks to the Junior Reporters for your continued hard work providing news.

[Il Palazzo]

Apologies, EJ. I was sure I was responding in the other thread.

[EuchreJack]

You are forgiven, my son. 

[Loud Whispers]

May as well post it here since this thread seems more conducive to pontificating

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I've been doing a big thunk. One thing I've been most intrigued by is how the end of all of this will appear. The Ukrainians evidently want to secure a peace where Russia withdraws totally from the nation, Crimea & East Ukraine included. Putin may settle for a token victory where Russia continues to occupy Donetsk, Donbas & Crimea; something which would at the very least ensure he doesn't get decapitated by his own cronies.

The Ukrainian army has thus far done a stellar job of defending, with grit, ATGMs and bayraktars. Yet to secure the kind of peace deal their leadership desires, they need to do more than hold onto defensive positions - they need to attack. I think the thought experiment for me at least is not whether the Ukrainians will launch a counter-assault, but when they will do it, and what that will look like. Will this result in the largest tank battle in European history since WWII? Or will we see a new form of warfare, as was witnessed in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict?

Wdy guys think about a potential Ukrainian counter-assault into the East?

[EuchreJack]

Uh, actually I would prefer pontificating to occur in the Emotional Response thread. Best to keep this thread to News.

I haven't made that clear, since discussion about the news has been brief. But pontificating can lead to arguing, which risks the News thread being locked down. Your help keeping this thread open would be greatly appreciated.

[martinuzz]

Putin has ordered his troops to cancel storming the Azov steel factory. Instead, he has ordered that it be hermetically sealed off from the outside world "in a way that not even a fly can go in or out".
Looks like he wants to starve those that are sheltering there.

[Strongpoint]

Putin has ordered his troops to cancel storming the Azov steel factory. Instead, he has ordered that it be hermetically sealed off from the outside world "in a way that not even a fly can go in or out".
Looks like he wants to starve those that are sheltering there.

Russia usually does the opposite of what it says so... IMO, assault is coming soon

PS. mistook this for the secondary thread

[EuchreJack]

You are forgiven, my son.

[Loud Whispers]

Putin has ordered his troops to cancel storming the Azov steel factory. Instead, he has ordered that it be hermetically sealed off from the outside world "in a way that not even a fly can go in or out".
Looks like he wants to starve those that are sheltering there.

This could just be a case of "I will bury you" vs "it's your funeral" translation errors

“I consider the proposed storming of the industrial zone unnecessary,” he told his Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in a televised meeting at the Kremlin. “I order you to cancel it.”

“There’s no need to climb into these catacombs and crawl underground through these industrial facilities,” he said. “Block off this industrial area so that not even a fly can get through.”

Other translations I've seen are considerably more basic - don't bleed manpower to win what can be achieved by siege