Ukraine war: Buildings burn after renewed Russian air attacks

BBC News

7 days ago

At least three people have died following another widespread air bombardment by Russia. Two people were killed in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, the regional governor, Sergiy Lysak, said, while a woman died of her injuries after being rescued from a burning apartment in Odesa, according to emergency services. President Volodymyr Zelensky said 10 regions of Ukraine, including a number of cities, were hit in the overnight assault. Ukraine's military said more than 340 explosive and dummy drones and 35 cruise and ballistic missiles were used. Although it said 90% of these were shot down, suppressed electronically or lost, more than 30 got through.
One of the strikes hit a residential block in the southern city of Odesa, causing a fire on its upper floors. Rescuers said five people were rescued from burning apartments - including the woman who later died. At least another six people were wounded. The eastern city of Pavlohrad was subjected to what Serhiy Lysak called a "hellish night and morning". He said there had been "explosion after explosion" caused by drone and missile strikes, adding it had been the biggest-scale attack on the city to date. Targets reportedly included industrial sites, a fire department, a clinic, a school, and a cultural institution.Zelensky wrote of "important infrastructure" being damaged there. A missile plant is based in Pavlohrad, and the city has been struck in the past by Russia.Russia's defence ministry said it struck military-industrial enterprises that produce components for missiles and drones overnight, but did not specify where.
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The north-eastern city of Sumy was also attacked. Zelensky said critical infrastructure had been damaged, cutting power to several thousand families. There have also been strikes - including with guided bombs - on another town in the region, Shostka, which lies less than 50km (30 miles) from the Russian border. Officials said a "targeted hit" there had caused a fire. They did not say what had been struck. Unverified video footage posted online purportedly of the incident shows a fierce fire and billowing clouds of grey smoke.Zelensky once again stressed the importance of bolstering air defences, both in terms of supplies from allies, but also producing them in Ukraine, including more interceptor drones. The Trump administration recently moved to free up weapons supplies, even if some of these - including much-needed Patriot air defences - will be paid for by other Nato allies.
Russia said it shot down more than 70 Ukrainian drones overnight into Saturday, most of them over the regions of Rostov, Moscow and Bryansk. The acting governor of Rostov, Yuri Slyusar, said the attack had been massive, affecting areas close to the border with occupied parts of Ukraine. Houses, he said, were damaged by what he said had been falling debris, and several settlements suffered temporary power cuts. Slyusar said one railway worker had been injured, and rail traffic disrupted. Several supply routes into Ukraine run through the area.Meanwhile, on the front lines, Russian forces continue to attack one of their key objectives - the town of Pokrovsk in the eastern region of Donetsk. Late on Friday, Ukraine's commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, acknowledged it faced increasing pressure, but insisted its defence was "steadfast". He said Russia had been trying to get to the city with small groups of soldiers attacking for sabotage and reconnaissance purposes, claiming one such group had been destroyed. Russia has been trying to encircle the Pokrovsk for months.