KYIV: Russian drones pummelled the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa, injuring three people and sparking massive fires, officials said on Friday, an attack that underlined Moscow’s intention to pursue aerial attacks even as it agreed to temporarily halt strikes on energy facilities.
The strike came shortly before Czech Republic President Peter Pavel visited Odesa early Friday morning and held meetings with the city’s leaders and officials from other southern regions.
“This is another reminder to the whole world: the war continues and Ukraine continues to fight,” the head of the Odesa region, Oleh Kiper, said in a statement.
He reported blazes at at least three locations after the attack late Thursday. “Civilian infrastructure, commercial facilities are on fire, cars damaged,” Kiper said.
Over 70 people and 20 fire engines were involved in extinguishing what the emergency services called “massive fires”.
In another attack, Russian glide bombs injured at least six people, including a child, in the Zaporizhzhia region overnight Thursday to Friday. Regional head Ivan Fedorov published photos showing fire fighters extinguishing flames at multiple damaged residential buildings.
The Ukrainian air force reported that Russia fired 214 exploding drones and decoys in the latest wave of attacks. It said 114 of them were intercepted and another 81 were jammed.
Russia shot down 43 Ukrainian drones, mostly over Volgograd. A Krasnodar oil depot remains ablaze after a Ukrainian strike. A tentative US-brokered ceasefire covers energy infrastructure, though Ukraine seeks broader protections. Russia has paused attacks on Ukraine’s energy
sites for 30 days.