() -Ukraine and Russia conducted aerial strikes along their respective Black Sea coastlines early Thursday, following unsuccessful direct negotiations that did not yield any progress toward ending the conflict that has lasted nearly three and a half years.
Russian forces carried out another large-scale drone attack on Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa, resulting in at least four injuries, multiple fires, and damage to the historic downtown area, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The renowned Pryvoz market in Odessa was one of the affected locations, said Regional Governor Oleh Kiper. “It is more than a trading area; it is the beating heart of Odessa,” he remarked.
On Thursday morning, several residents were removing broken glass from the streets in the vicinity.
“So what if the drones are in the air? We’ll take them down; they won’t defeat us,” said Yevhen, a 20-year-old student assisting with the cleanup.
Emergency authorities in Russia’s Krasnodar region, located along the Black Sea, reported that remnants from a downed drone hit and killed a woman in the Adler district, close to the resort town of Sochi. A second woman is receiving treatment in a hospital for severe injuries, according to officials who shared the information on the Telegram messaging platform.
The leader responsible for administration in the Sirius federal district, located south of Sochi, reported that a drone struck an oil facility, without providing additional information. Russia’s aviation authority mentioned that activities at Sochi airport were halted for approximately four hours.
Russia also targeted the central area of Cherkasy during the night, resulting in seven injuries, among them a nine-year-old, and causing damage to over a dozen residential apartment buildings.
Earlier, negotiators talked about additional prisoner exchanges during a short peace conference in Istanbul, Turkey, but they still differed on ceasefire conditions and a potential meeting between their leaders.
“Yesterday, during a gathering in Istanbul, the Russian party was once more offered a suggestion to immediately and fully halt hostilities. In reaction, Russian drones are targeting residential structures,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated on Telegram.
He mentioned that Russia deployed 103 drones and four missiles in its nighttime assault, with deputy prime minister Oleskiy Kuleba stating that the attacks targeted civilian facilities such as seaports, transportation centers, and residential zones.
In the past few weeks, Russian forces have increased drone strikes on towns and cities located well away from the 1,000 km (620-mile) front line in eastern and southern Ukraine.
Ukraine’s armed forces have been striking energy and military facilities in Russia as a reaction to coordinated Russian assaults that have obliterated towns and cities and severely damaged its power systems.
(Reported by ; Edited by Christopher Cushing and Philippa Fletcher)
