A new Russian air strike on civilian enclaves has resulted in at least 18 deaths and 31 injuries. The attack was directed specifically at a recreation center as well as a residential building in Odessa’s Bilhorod Dnistrovsky area. Four children and a pregnant lady were among the victims. One of them has also died. After finding seven survivors under the rubble, rescue teams are continuing their search for survivors.
This bombardment took place in the middle of an offensive by Russian aircraft and artillery at different points in the southeast part of Ukraine. The General Staff’s initial estimates indicate that it was a Tu-22 aircraft that launched the “powerful, heavy” rockets that led to the disaster. The stealthy X-22 missiles are equipped with this aircraft. They are distinguished by their high explosive potential and high precision. This was a result of decades of reliability issues in the first models. One hit directly against a nine-story building, while the other struck a recreation center. The apartment block was the scene of fourteen deaths. According to local media, several witnesses reported that one of the entrances to the building “has completely fallen” and that survivors could be heard screaming among the rubble.
Firefighters search for survivors / Reuters
The area is still in chaos. Although no missing persons have been reported, firefighters aren’t ruling out more bodies being discovered as they examine the remains of the building. According to neighbors, the blast shook the entire building and the facade collapsed. Odessa, the Black Sea’s main port, has been under attack by Russian artillery ever since the invasion. However, the fire has intensified in the past two months when Moscow wanted to cut off Ukraine from the sea. Charles Michel, President of the European Council was shocked by the shells at this port strategic on May 9, as part of a visit to demonstrate EU support for the Ukrainians.
The latest bombardment has impacted the tourist town Serhiyivka. This small settlement with just 5,000 people is located at the mouth Lake Budaki on the Black Sea. According to some sources, the two-floor recreational center that was destroyed by the blast could be part of a spa.
Digital media and social networking make it easy to see the outrage and alarm. The invasion seems to be characterized by the repeated bombing of civilian targets. After being struck by a missile, the embers of a fire that engulfed a Kremenchuk shopping center have yet to be extinguished. Around 20 people were killed and 40 others were left missing. There is no way to locate them. Moscow claims that the attack on Kremenchuk was against an ammunition warehouse. The bombs deflated and impacted an abandoned shopping center. Both the images and the deaths prove that the establishment was not destroyed.
A recreation center was destroyed by the second projectile / reuters
In reality, the offensive was part of a torrent of fire. Ukrainian authorities reported additional rocket attacks in Kharkov, Mykolaiv and the Chernigov area, but no casualties were reported in either of these instances. The General Staff points out the coincidence of this artillery wave just after the NATO Summit in Madrid, and the withdrawal from Snake Island of Russian troops.
This withdrawal has been justified by the Kremlin as a “goodwill gesture” in order to demonstrate that it is not trying to stop grain flowing through the Black Sea. The British Intelligence has this morning joined the position of kyiv. According to them, the withdrawal was due to the ongoing harassment of the Ukrainian troops by the Russian garrison. In his morning speech, President Volodymyr Zilensky stated that the march by the Snake Island invaders “significantly changes the situation” in the Black Sea because it “limits actions of the occupiers”. Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, also stressed the importance of this withdrawal. He considers it a victory of the Ukrainian troops, as he did previously with “the withdrawal form kyiv & Kharkov” and supports his thesis that war will end according to the conditions set by kyiv, and not Moscow.
