Ukraine and Russia Report Increased Casualties from Kakhovka Dam Explosion

Ukrainian and Russian officials reported an increase in the death toll from the Kakhovka dam explosion to 45 people. According to Ukraine, 16 individuals lost their lives in government-controlled areas as a result of the dam explosion on June 6. Russian officials reported the latest death toll in their occupied territories as 29 people. The Kremlin accuses Ukraine of 'sabotage' at the dam, aiming to cut off water to the Crimean Peninsula and divert attention from a 'wobbly' counteroffensive against Russian forces. In response, Ukraine claims that the Russians caused the explosion, creating a massive flood on the battlefront, destroying agricultural lands and cutting off civilian water supply. Meanwhile, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing engineers and explosives experts, that the Kakhovka dam explosion in the area occupied by Russian soldiers in Ukraine was caused by explosives planted by the Russians. According to the newspaper, explosives detonated in a passage that runs through the dam's concrete base, destroying it. An international legal team assisting Ukrainian prosecutors in their investigations announced on Friday that it is 'highly likely' that the destruction of this dam in the Kherson region resulted from explosives placed by the Russians themselves. Previously, Sabrina Singh, deputy spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense, told reporters last Tuesday, 'Responsibility for the destruction of the Kakhovka dam has not been determined, and evidence is under review.' According to statistics provided by the Ukrainian government, over 3,600 civilians in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions have been forced to leave their homes due to flooding caused by this explosion, 31 people are still missing, and 1,300 residential homes in the government-controlled area remain submerged.