Victorious news of 495th day of war: marines down Russian helicopter, special office is set up in The Hague to investigate Russian crimes in Ukraine

Marines shot down a Russian helicopter with an anti-tank Javelin

Soldiers with the 36th Detached Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Bilynskyi destroyed a Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter in the Berdiansk sector using the Javelin anti-tank missile system.

"The 309th helicopter of the occupying Russian forces was destroyed by the marines of the 36th Detached Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Bilynskyi," the brigade said in a statement.

Leopard 1 A5 tanks from Germany to arrive in Ukraine in the coming weeks

In the coming weeks, dozens of Leopard 1 A5 main battle tanks will be delivered to Ukraine by Germany and Denmark. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said this in an interview with Rzeczpospolita.

"We have adopted the National Security Strategy for the first time in history. The majority of society supports this breakthrough. In the coming weeks, dozens of Leopard 1 A5 battle tanks will be delivered to Ukraine, provided by Germany and Denmark," he said. 

According to the minister, Germany provides the second largest military assistance to Ukraine in terms of equipment, both in terms of direct financial assistance or that provided within the EU, and is one of the countries that provides significant training to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Commander of Russian special forces Akhmat eliminated in Ukraine

Yevgeny Pisarenko, the commander of the Russian Akhmat special forces, who had the call sign 'Bolshoi,' has been killed in Ukraine. 

This is reported by the unit commander Apti Alaudinov.

Pisarenko reportedly previously served in the Stavropol riot police, where he was promoted to colonel. At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, he voluntarily joined the Russian army and participated in Russia's war against Ukraine as part of the Chechen battalion Akhmat. Russian war correspondent Dmitry Kulko said he did it to "protect the people of Donbas".

International Center for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression against Ukraine opened in The Hague

On July 3, the International Center for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression against Ukraine (ICPA) was opened in The Hague. This could be a step towards the creation of a special tribunal that could bring Kremlin officials to justice for starting the war in Ukraine.

"This is the beginning of the end of impunity for the crime of aggression. Starting today, Ukrainian prosecutors will work in The Hague. Representatives of the JIT from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and Romania will join them in the International Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine (ICPA) at the initial stage. The US Special Prosecutor for the Crime of Aggression will support the Center's activities. Other countries and institutions will be able to join in the coming months," said Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin.

The Prosecutor General’s Office noted that the International Center for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine (ICPA) is a unique judicial center integrated into Eurojust to facilitate national investigations of the crime of aggression related to the war in Ukraine. Through the ICPA, independent prosecutors from different countries will be able to cooperate in a single location on a daily basis, share evidence quickly and efficiently, and agree on a common investigation and prosecution strategy. The ICPA will facilitate the efficient preparation of cases and will participate in any future prosecution of the crime of aggression, regardless of the jurisdiction in which the cases are filed.

Switzerland to finance the rebuilding of 30 schools in Ukraine 

Switzerland will provide CHF 5.5 million (USD 6.1 million) for the repair and reconstruction of about 30 schools in Ukraine, where about 15,000 children study.

According to the press service of the Swiss Federal Council, the money is intended to restore about a dozen schools in the Chernihiv, Odesa, and Poltava regions that were damaged during the war.

"The plans include the arrangement of protected multifunctional rooms, where education can take place without interruption even during an air raid alarm," the press service said.

"Thanks to the additional contribution from Switzerland, the DECIDE project should also be able to provide technical and pedagogical support for online education for children who have been displaced or live in areas particularly vulnerable to hostilities where in-person teaching is unfeasible. Switzerland's contribution enables about 15,000 students to continue their education in safety and dignity," the Swiss Federal Council emphasized.