Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of carrying out deadly attacks as Russian strikes damaged the strategic port city of Odesa, while Ukrainian drone attacks killed five people in Russia’s Belgorod region.
Three people were killed and 37 wounded in Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv after a multi-storey apartment building was hit, while authorities in Russia’s Belgorod said five people were killed and 25 wounded in a Ukrainian drone attack.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia had also struck Odesa’s seaport, accusing Moscow of targeting Ukraine’s agricultural exports and, by extension, global food security.
“In this way, the Russians are at war with the world’s food security,” Zelenskiy said.
Odesa’s seaports serve as a major artery for Ukraine’s agricultural exports, making the southern city a key target in the wider conflict.
Local authorities said dozens of drones and missiles struck Odesa, leaving about a dozen people wounded.
Zelenskiy said Russia had also attacked nine other Ukrainian regions on Sunday.
Russia has repeatedly targeted Odesa as part of efforts to restrict Ukraine’s access to the Black Sea. “Everyone who lives in Odesa knows that the most common target is around the port area,” said Ihor, a 67-year-old resident whose apartment narrowly avoided destruction.
The latest attacks came as Ukraine continued efforts to disrupt Russian revenues and logistics supporting the war, including strikes on Russian oil tankers and cargo vessels in the Black Sea.
Ukraine claimed responsibility for three more such strikes on Sunday.
Both sides have increasingly targeted logistics and economic infrastructure belonging to the other, with e-commerce warehouses coming under attack and Ukrainian petrol stations also facing heavy strikes during the summer.
Ukraine’s state oil and gas company, Naftogaz, said attacks on its facilities had increased significantly over the previous three days, including overnight strikes on oil extraction facilities.
The Ukrainian Energy Ministry also said Russian forces had attacked power infrastructure in the Odesa region, leaving a significant number of residents of the port city without electricity.
Power supplies were subsequently restored to about 90,000 consumers, according to the ministry.
Russia’s Defence Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces had struck fuel storage facilities in Odesa and nearby Chornomorsk that were being used “in the interests” of the Ukrainian military.
The continuing attacks have further intensified concerns over civilian safety and critical infrastructure as the war enters its fifth year.
In the Vatican, Pope Leo renewed his call for an end to the conflict, warning about the growing civilian toll. “Tragic incidents are multiplying, causing an ever-growing number of civilian victims, including children,” the pontiff said before worshippers gathered for Sunday’s Angelus prayer.
Erizia Rubyjeana
Follow us on:
