Attack on Ukraine, return of prisoners, extension of martial law: January 15 highlights

Attack on Ukraine

Overnight and on the morning of January 15, Russian forces attacked Ukrainian energy and gas infrastructure. The aggressor used 117 missiles and drones for this attack. The Ukrainian defenders managed to shoot down 23 Kh-101/Kh-55 cruise missiles, three Kalibrs, four Kh-59/Kh-69 missiles, and 47 drones. Another 27 drones disappeared from radar.

The attack affected Ukrainian energy facilities, in particular gas infrastructure in the Kharkiv, Lviv, and Ivano-Frankivsk oblasts.

Return of prisoners

Ukraine has returned 25 of its citizens from Russian captivity — 24 soldiers and a civilian. Among them are defenders of Mariupol and Azovstal, as well as Kharkiv, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts. They are seriously injured and ill.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said: today's exchange is the result of Ukraine achieving a separate format for the return of seriously ill and wounded prisoners.

Extension of martial law

The Verkhovna Rada voted to extend martial law and mobilization for another 90 days — until May 9. 315 MPs voted for Law No. 12404 on the extension of martial law.

If the law is signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, it will be the 14th extension of martial law and mobilization since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Has the parliament obliged media outlets to delete critical comments from readers?

Reports spread on social media that a law that is supposed to strengthen the guarantees of journalists' work allegedly obliges media outlets to delete negative comments from their readers. The initiator of the bill, Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, claims that this is a lie.

The Institute of Mass Information writes that the obligation of media to moderate comments on their pages has existed in Ukraine since at least 2009. That is, this law does not create new obligations for the media, but only clarifies the already existing norm.

Now, media outlets may not be held liable if they remove a comment within three days not only from the moment of receiving the National Council's order, but also from the moment of receiving the court's ruling on the initiation of proceedings, which will allow them to avoid legal red tape.

Over 450 arsonists who were Russian agents were caught in Ukraine

During 2024, the SBU and the National Police detained more than 450 people who, on behalf of Russian handlers, were involved in arson in Ukraine.

Law enforcement officers emphasize that the arson of property of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, state institutions, or their mining are classified by the Criminal Code of Ukraine as terrorism or sabotage. They provide for strict criminal liability even for minors. Russian special services actively hunt for minors on the Internet, offering "part-time work."

Ukraine and Russia will have to make concessions — future US Secretary of State

Senator Marco Rubio, whom Donald Trump picked for Secretary of State, said that it is unrealistic to believe that Ukraine will be able to drive out Russian troops from its territory, and therefore Kyiv will have to make concessions in the same way as Moscow.

According to the senator, in this war, Russia cannot capture all of Ukraine, but at the same time, "it is unrealistic to believe that a state the size of Ukraine will somehow defeat the Russian Federation."

Also, according to Rubio, Ukraine is running out of people, not money. At the same time, the future Secretary of State admitted that ending the Russo-Ukrainian war will be "not an easy endeavor," but it will "require bold diplomacy."

Ukrainian woman among the best teachers in the world

Lesya Pavliuk, a primary school teacher at Ivano-Frankivsk Lyceum No. 7, who previously won the Global Teacher Prize Ukraine 2024, was included in the list of the 50 best teachers in the world.

As organizers said, teaching during war and the COVID-19 pandemic has faced extraordinary challenges. Air raid sirens and internally displaced students have become part of her daily reality, but, as noted, “she has adapted to them with remarkable ingenuity.”

Other news

• A Kyiv restaurant explained its conflict with a serviceman: This is a "hit" on the owner because of money.
• During 2024, Ukrainians crossed the state border approximately 30.11 million times. Of these, 442,900 people never returned home.
• Amidst the possible ban of TikTok in the US, its counterpart, the Chinese RedNote, has attracted a wave of new users in recent days.
• Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that he would not allow the issue of the Volyn tragedy to be used in political games.