Russia Pounds Ukraine City    05/10 06:43

   Russia pounded a town in Ukraine's northeast with artillery, rockets and 
guided aerial bombs Friday before attempting an infantry breach of local 
defenses.

   KYIV, Ukraine (AP) -- Russia pounded a town in Ukraine's northeast with 
artillery, rockets and guided aerial bombs Friday before attempting an infantry 
breach of local defenses, authorities said, in a tactical switch that Kyiv 
officials have been expecting for weeks as the war stretches into its third 
year.

   Intense nighttime shelling targeted Vovchansk, in the Kharkiv region and 
less than 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Russian border, regional Gov. Oleh 
Syniehubov said. The barrage prompted authorities to begin the evacuation of 
around 3,000 people.

   Around dawn, Russian forces tried to pierce the Ukrainian defenses near 
Vovchansk, Ukraine's Defense Ministry said, adding that it had deployed reserve 
units to fend off the attack.

   Analysts said the assault could mark the start of a Russian attempt to carve 
out a "buffer zone" that President Vladimir Putin vowed to create earlier this 
year to halt frequent Ukrainian attacks on Belgorod and other Russian border 
regions.

   Ukraine had previously said it was aware that Russia was assembling 
thousands of troops along the northeastern border, close to the Kharkiv and 
Sumy regions. While the Kremlin's forces have made their most recent ground 
thrust in eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian intelligence officials said they expected 
the Kremlin's forces to attack in the northeast, too.

   Though Russia likely can't capture Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, 
it could compel Ukraine to send more troops to the region, leaving other areas 
more vulnerable to attack. Also, forcing Ukrainian authorities to evacuate 
civilians is likely to create disruption and divert resources.

   "The entire town is under massive shelling now, it is not safe to stay 
here," Vovchansk administration head Tamaz Hambarishvili told Ukraine's 
Hromadske Radio.

   The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said fighting against Russian sabotage and 
reconnaissance groups continued into the afternoon.