May 12 events in Babelʼs review: the occupiers plan a “referendum” in Mariupol to join Russia, and a Russian ship burns again near the Zmiyiny Island

From the very beginning of Russiaʼs full-scale war against Ukraine, Babel has been conducting daily live text coverage and promptly informing the main news on the Telegram channel. We also do a daily digest of the highlights of the day in case you havenʼt been able to follow live.

The day before, the Russians struck at Novhorod-Siversky. Schools, administrative buildings and residential buildings were damaged, three people were killed and 12 were injured. In the morning, the occupiers fired on the Zelenodolsk community from the Smerch. They aimed at Velyka Kostromka and Zelenodolsk. One person was killed and another was injured. In Sumy oblast, the village of Novi Vyrky was shelled with artillery. The shelling lasted from six in the morning, killing one person. 8 to 12 missiles were fired at Kremenchuk, and the Russians aimed at an oil refinery and infrastructure.

A spokesman for the Odessa OVA, Serhiy Bratchuk, reports that the Russian logistics ship Vsevolod Bobrov caught fire on Zmiyiny Island due to the actions of our sailors.

An investigator under the nickname BlueSauron, according to open data, estimated the losses of Russians on the crossing of the Siversky Donets River near Bilohorivka in Luhansk Oblast. A total of 73 units of Russian equipment were destroyed or abandoned.

Adviser to the mayor of Mariupol Petro Andriushchenko said that the occupiers want to hold a "referendum" in Mariupol on joining Russia. According to his sources, it is planned to do so on May 15. Andryushchenko also said that school notebooks in the Mariupol district and in Mariupol are signed: “Mariupol. Rostov oblast".

Mass burial sites around Mariupol continue to grow. The satellite Planet Labs recorded the expansion of cemeteries in the village of Stary Krym and the village of Vynohradne, Donetsk oblast. The first cemetery increased from 200 to over 340 meters in length. The number of trenches has also increased.

CNN has released a new video of a Russian military war crime in Ukraine. The occupiers shot dead two civilians on the territory of a car dealership on the outskirts of Kyiv — it was caught on video surveillance cameras. The owner of the car dealership and a security guard were killed.

President Volodymyr Zelensky had a telephone conversation with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto. They discussed Finlandʼs accession to NATO, as well as defense cooperation between the two countries.

The UN Human Rights Council has voted to launch an investigation into the crimes of Russian troops in the liberated territories of Ukraine. 33 countries voted in favor, while China and Eritrea voted against.

The United Kingdom is looking around the world for old Soviet or Russian equipment to buy it and hand it over to Ukraine. According to Secretary of Defense Ben Wallace, a significant number of British military attaches are working on this. He said that the Russians are also doing this — this may indicate that Russiaʼs reserves are running out.

The German company Siemens has announced its withdrawal from the Russian market. It has already started the procedure of cessation of production and other activities. At one time, the company got into a scandal — its pipes were spotted in the occupied Crimea, which violated European sanctions.

Finnish energy holding Fortum is leaving Russia. If Russian assets fail to sell, the loss will be $ 3.5 billion. Fortum has 12 power plants in Russia.

The Japanese government has frozen the assets of Russiaʼs largest bank, Sberbank, and private Alfa Bank. The Japanese have also been banned from investing in Russian companies if they receive more than 10% of the shares. In addition, Japanʼs largest importer of LNG, Japanʼs JERA, said it could find a quick replacement for gas imported from Russia if Japanʼs political leadership decides.