A Russian attack during the night from Tuesday into Wednesday on the city of Odesa in southern Ukraine killed three people and injured three more, regional authorities reported. “The enemy has attacked the city again,” Sergiy Lysak, head of the Odesa military administration, wrote on Telegram, adding that the strike hit residential buildings.
Lysak said that “for the moment, it is known that three people died as a result of the enemy attack,” and that three other victims were hospitalized.
In addition, another nighttime strike using cluster munitions hit a residential area on the outskirts of Sumy in northern Ukraine, causing several injuries and damage to private homes, regional administration head Oleg Hrygorov and Sumy city military administration head Serhiy Kryvosheyenko reported. Authorities warned that unexploded ordnance may remain in streets near the impact site.
Later, the head of Sumy’s Motor Vehicle Department reported that seven people were injured in those incidents. Among them was an 11-year-old child who suffered an acute stress reaction and received medical attention on site. A 30-year-old man and a 59-year-old woman remain in serious condition. Two of the injured are hospitalized, while two others are receiving outpatient treatment.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that the military carried out strikes against the southern ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk in the Odesa region, as well as the Dnipro-Buh area. In a statement published on the social network MAX, it said the attacked quays were “used to supply the Ukrainian armed forces.”
According to the official statement, Russian forces struck fuel storage tanks, drone production and assembly workshops, and four Ukrainian military supply vessels. The Russian military frequently targets Ukrainian port infrastructure, especially in the Odesa region.
Russian air defenses shot down 36 Ukrainian drones that were heading toward Moscow over the course of the day. Moscow mayor Sergey Sobyanin wrote on social media that emergency service teams are working at the sites where debris from the destroyed drones fell.
In recent weeks, Kyiv has intensified attacks on Moscow and its surroundings; authorities reported the previous day that more than 350 enemy drones had been shot down.
From Moscow, President Vladimir Putin pledged victory in Ukraine during his first electoral event ahead of the September legislative elections, in which the ruling United Russia party will seek to keep its parliamentary majority. “Our strength lies in that we always overcome every difficulty and every fear. And that makes us stronger. And that is precisely why, of course, we always move forward and will continue to do so,” Putin said at the “All for Victory” forum organized by the Popular Front platform.
The president said Russian forces are advancing on the front and that the national economy continues to develop despite Western restrictions. According to Putin, citizens have donated about 70 billion rubles (roughly USD 913 million) to the military through the Popular Front. “And therefore, without a doubt, victory awaits us,” he said.
The remarks were made in the presence of military personnel and their families, one day after Russia’s Central Electoral Commission (CEC) approved the candidate lists of eleven parties for the September 20 elections. The CEC must still verify the documentation for all those seeking a seat, so the total number of authorized candidates is not yet finalized.
Amid public dissatisfaction over the war, economic decline, internet restrictions and a fuel crisis, polls place support for United Russia at historically low levels. The September vote will be the first legislative election since the invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.
(With information from AFP and EFE)