Russian night strike kills civilian in Odessa
Russian forces once again struck the Ukrainian port city of Odessa on the night of Saturday 22 to Sunday 23, killing one person, an attack which comes a few hours before a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, a staunch ally of Moscow, AFP reports.
Regularly targeted by Russian strikes, Odessa, whose historic center was listed earlier this year as a World Heritage Site by Unesco, was the target of a new night attack in which a civilian was killed. “Unfortunately, we have a civilian killed as a result of the Russian night terror attack on Odessa”Governor Oleg Kiper wrote early on Sunday on Telegram.
A little earlier, he had reported a “Russian attack at 03:00” (2 hours in Paris). “In Odessa, 18 victims including four children. Fourteen people were transferred to hospitals in the city, three were children”, he said, adding that help was on the spot. The Ukrainian army’s Southern Operational Command reported that the air defenses had shot down a part “important” Russian missiles, of five different types, including Kalibr.
Unintercepted projectiles have “caused damage to the port infrastructure, to at least six residences including apartment buildings”, detailed the army, adding that a missile had hit the Orthodox cathedral in the city center. According to a video reposted by the city hall on its Telegram channel, the Odessa Transfiguration Cathedral was damaged.
“Two architectural monuments” suffered damage in this attack, which also caused “power outages”, continued the army. The latter reported 19 injuries, including four children. “More defense missile systems” and tactical missiles for Ukraine, claimed the head of the presidential administration, Andriy Yermak.
Odessa has notably experienced a “Hell’s Night” Thursday, Kyiv accusing Moscow of specifically targeting port infrastructure to prevent any possible resumption of Ukrainian grain exports. Planted on the shores of the Black Sea, Odessa is a strategic city for maritime transit in the region.
For its part, UNESCO has “strongly condemned” Friday Russian strikes against “several museums” and historic buildings in the center, which “suffered damage”. The Russian army has assured to target only military sites.
