ADVERTISEMENTAt least nine people were injured in overnight Russian drone strikes on the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service has said.
The attacks sparked multiple fires and caused significant damage to residential buildings, commercial properties and medical facilities.
Ukraine’s Air Force reported on its Telegram channel that Russia launched a total of 62 drones overnight, targeting the regions of Odesa, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv.
Of those, 40 drones were intercepted and shot down, while 11 lost contact with radar systems.
The latest wave of strikes comes just hours after a deadly attack on the northeastern town of Sumy, where at least 34 people were killed and 117 injured, according to Ukrainian authorities.
The attack occurred on Sunday morning as residents gathered to celebrate Palm Sunday.
Two ballistic missiles struck the town centre, which is around 40 kilometres from the Russian border.
Ukrainian officials said the missile attacks included the use of cluster munitions, a type of weapon that releases or ejects smaller submunitions.
In a social media post on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attacks.
“Only real pressure on Russia can stop this. Tangible sanctions are needed against the sectors that finance Russia’s killing machine,” he wrote.
“The one who brought the war must be stopped and held accountable for what they have done; that is only fair,” he added.
Governments around the world have condemned the Russian attack in Sumy.
“I hope that President Trump, the US administration, see that the leader of Russia is mocking their goodwill, and I hope the right decisions are taken,” said Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski, referring to Washington’s attempts to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Elina Valtonen, Finland’s foreign minister, noted that the attack on Sumy came shortly after President Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, was in Saint Petersburg for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
It demonstrates that “Russia shows full disregard for the peace process, but also that Russia has zero regard for human life,” Valtonen said.
Video editor • Lucy Davalou
