I cheated death by racing into woods seconds before Putin’s forces bombed our barracks
A TRAUMATISED Ukrainian soldier told yesterday how cruise missiles thundered into his barracks in a dawn massacre marking a terrifying escalation to the war.
Visibly shaking, the squaddie said he cheated death by racing into nearby woods seconds before the four projectiles slammed into his quarters.
Others in his unit failed to escape and were feared among the 35 killed in one of the worst attacks of the conflict so far — and just 11 miles from Nato territory.
It came after fears were raised of the West being dragged into an all-out war when Russia said convoys of western military equipment being shipped to Ukraine were “legitimate targets”.
But hope emerged last night as Ukraine and Russia said they were confident of progress at planned peace talks.
The soldier who escaped spoke to The Sun close to the base at Yavoriv.
He said: “Four missiles hit our barracks. We were able to get out as ours was not the first to be hit.
“We heard the other missiles and evacuated. Almost all those in our place got out but not everyone and the missiles came down on where we’d been staying. Ten plus people I know are missing.”
Another Ukrainian soldier said the missiles came from the direction of Russia’s ally, Belarus, to the North from where other attacks have come.
He said: “The missiles hit the barracks and everyone took cover in woods. They came from the direction of Belarus. There have been explosions and many ambulances arriving.”
Lviv governor Maksym Kozytskyi confirmed 35 people had died and 134 had been injured. He said the toll would have been far higher had not Ukraine’s missile defence system “shot down” most of the 30-plus missiles fired.
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The attacked military site covers 151-square miles and accommodates up to 1,790 people. It is home to the International Center for Peacekeeping and Security where local forces train alongside Nato troops.
Foreign legion recruits are also trained there. None were among the casualties. Security was being ramped up yesterday and The Sun saw soldiers set up machine-gun positions outside the perimeter as a stream of ambulances arrived.
Around 20 buses full of foreign recruits went the other way, leaving for the front.
A former British soldier who had been at the camp on Saturday said around 500 foreign fighters were based there, including around 100 Brits. Others were from France, America, Switzerland and Sweden.
The attack — which came as several Ukraine cities faced continuing bombardment — shocked locals in nearby Yavoriv close to the Polish border. Married dad Vitaliy, 36, who runs a car-wash firm, said: “Everyone here knows someone connected to the base. It is devastating for all of us.
“I live 9km away and I heard a huge bang. It rattled my windows. I looked out and could see a massive fire in the distance.
“My son is only four and he was terrified and I had to reassure him. Nowhere in Ukraine is safe. Everywhere is a target for Russia. I cannot believe we’re being invaded like this in 2022. It is insane.”
‘IT IS INSANE’
Russian troops again targeted the airport in the western city of Ivano-Frankivsk — less than 100 miles from Nato member Romania. The airport was also hit on Friday.
In Lviv, just 32 miles from the attacked army base, shops were boarded up and air raid sirens sounded day and night.
Thirty-two were injured when Russian troops blasted a monastery in Donetsk where monks, children and refugees were sheltering.
An airstrike hit a train evacuating people from the city, killing one person and injuring another.
In battle-ravaged Chernihiv in the north, one local was killed as Putin’s troops continued their daily bombardment of residential areas.
Fighting continued around Kyiv as Russian forces pressed on with their bid to encircle the capital.
Chief regional administrator Oleksiy Kuleba said Russian forces were trying to impose the “siege and starve” tactics used in other cities. But he vowed: “We’re getting ready to defend Kyiv, and we’re prepared to fight for ourselves.”
In Irpin, 12 miles outside of Kyiv, bodies littered the street. Nine people died in an air strike on the Black Sea city of Mykolaiv.
Around 200,000 residents of the besieged city of Mauripol continued to struggle without water and power after a 12-day siege. The Red Cross said desperate residents were facing a “worst case scenario”.
‘IMMENSE SUFFERING’
It added: “The human suffering is simply immense.”
The mayor said the situation was now “critical”. At least 2,187 people have died under non-stop shelling, officials said last night. Fifty thousands children face freezing to death and starvation.
Pope Francis called it a “martyr city”. He said of the war: “Let the cry of the suffering people be heard, and let the bombings and attacks stop. In the name of God, I ask you, stop this massacre.”
A convoy escorted by Orthodox priests got within 50 miles of the city on Sunday. It was carrying 100 tonnes of aid but was reportedly unable to get through.
In the southern city of Dniprorudne, a second mayor was kidnapped. The abduction of Yevhen Matveyev came after a video emerged showing Ivan Fedorov, mayor of Melitopol, being led away.
Street protests continued in the occupied city of Kherson with locals waving Ukrainian flags and holding signs saying: “Kherson is Ukraine.”
Peace talks failed again over the weekend and America responded to the military base outage by reminding Moscow that an attack on one Nato member is an attack on all.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the US would “work with our allies to defend every inch of Nato territory”.
In his daily video address Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said: “Russian invaders cannot conquer us. They don’t have that kind of strength, they don’t have that kind of spirit.”
Last night a glimmer of hope emerged when Ukrainian and Russian negotiators said they thought progress could be made at talks.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said: “We will not concede in principle on any positions. Russia now understands this. Russia is already beginning to talk constructively.”
Russian delegate Leonid Slutsky said “substantial progress” had been made and there was now hope of achieving a “joint position”.