Kyiv, 15 January 2024 (dpa/MIA) — Ukraine is accusing Russia of using explosives containing banned chemical compounds against Ukrainian soldiers in their trenches, while destroying a grain storage facility in its latest bombardment of civilian infrastructure.

Explosives containing the irritant CS gas, also known as tear gas, have reportedly been dropped from drones or fired from artillery. The poison gas is also used by police in many regions.

The country's General Staff said on Sunday that 626 cases have been recorded since the start of the war almost two years ago. Since the beginning of January 2024, there have been 51 cases with an increasing trend of up to 10 attacks per day, it reported.

The use of such gas in warfare is banned under the United Nations' Chemical Weapons Convention, which Moscow has also signed. Ukrainian claims could not be independently verified.

The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) had written in June 2023 about the possible use of irritant gas by Russian troops, based on a report on Russian state television.

Because the Ukrainian soldiers had their protective equipment against nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, the tear gas could not do them much harm, the institute analysed. However, wearing gas masks is a hindrance when fighting.

Meanwhile, during a Russian attack in eastern Ukraine a grain storage building in Vovchansk was bombed in an aerial attack and largely destroyed, police spokesman Serhiy Bolvinov said.

A destroyed grain warehouse was recognizable in the attached photos. The information could not initially be independently verified.

Since the beginning of Russia's war against Ukraine nearly two years ago, the Russian military has repeatedly targeted civilian infrastructure.

Ukraine has been fending off a large-scale Russian invasion since February 2022.

The situation on the front in the east and south of the country has been deadlocked for months. Despite fierce battles with casualties on both sides, there have hardly been any changes to the front line.

In light of the increasing number of Russian drone and cruise missile attacks that Ukraine has witnessed, the air force command in Kiev has proposed a comprehensive electronic air defence system.

Kiev says the municipalities themselves could raise the funds to purchase electronic devices that could be used to jam the sensors of approaching drones.

Yuri Ihnat, spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, said on Ukrainian television that such devices could "help to save lives."

Late on Sunday night air defence systems in the Russian region of Kursk near the border with Ukraine repelled three Ukrainian missiles, according to the governor of Kursk, Roman Starovoit.

"According to preliminary information, 3 Ukrainian missiles were shot down over the territory of the Fatezhsky district by air defence forces on duty. Thank you to our defenders!" Starovoit said in a post on the Telegram social media network just before midnight.

The information could not be independently verified.

There was initially no information on casualties or damage.

Russia's war against Ukraine is meanwhile also affecting Russian health care, according to British intelligence reports.

The Russian civilians are most likely feeling the effects of the war via cuts to their own health-care system, the British Defence Ministry announced in its regular intelligence update on Sunday.

Russian media had reported that the general public across the country was having problems accessing hospital services, the ministry wrote. Medicines such as antibiotics are also in short supply.

The war is probably contributing significantly to this situation, as wounded soldiers have to be treated in hospitals. The Kremlin is also being forced to cut back on civilian health care across the country due to a shortage of hospital staff and financial pressure.