Odesa Missile Attack: At least five people died while over 30 others including two children and a pregnant woman sustained injuries after a Russian missile hit the Black Sea port city of Odesa in Ukraine. Among the structures damaged in the missile attack was an educational institution, popularly known as the Harry Potter Castle due to its striking resemblance to the iconic Scottish architectural style. Visuals from the attack site showed cone-shaped towers and roofs engulfed in massive fire.

According to Ukrainian authorities, Russia used an Iskander ballistic missile alongside cluster munitions to orchestrate the attack. Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin revealed the recovery of missile debris and metal fragments strewn across a wide radius, indicating the brutality of the attack.

Video footage, released by Ukraine's Prosecutor General, captures the harrowing moment when numerous bomblets erupted in quick succession near the seafront, unleashing chaos and devastation. Furthermore, the assault inflicted significant damage to nearly 20 residential buildings and critical infrastructure.

Kiper and Odesa Mayor Hennadii Trukhanov had reported a series of loud explosions. However, Russia, according to a report by Reuters, has said that it does not deliberately target civilians. On Monday, a Russian missile struck an educational institution in Odesa, killing five people. Odesa has been a frequent target of Russian forces in the more than two-year-old war, with many attacks aimed at the city's port facilities.

In a separate development, Russian officials claimed success in intercepting a substantial missile and drone onslaught by Ukraine in Crimea. Sergey Aksyonov, the Kremlin-appointed civilian authority in the occupied region, cautioned against approaching potential unexploded ordnance.

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While Russian military bloggers asserted that the targets primarily comprised airfields, the closure and subsequent reopening of the vital bridge linking Crimea to Russia underscored the logistical challenges posed by such incidents.

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Despite Russia's assertions of successfully thwarting the assault with US-supplied Army Tactical Missile Systems, Ukraine's response remains undisclosed, leaving the veracity of the claims uncertain. The scarcity of visual evidence depicting the explosions further complicates efforts to ascertain the full extent of the incident.

 

(With ANI, Reuters Inputs)


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