The Ukrainian military announced that three civilians were killed in a Russian drone attack on the Black Sea port city of Odesa in the early hours of Saturday morning, after drone debris fell on a residential building, igniting a fire.
Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for the Southern Defense Forces of Ukraine, revealed that air defenses in the Odesa region shot down eight Shahed drones and two missiles, and this attack is the latest in a wave of nighttime airstrikes targeting Ukrainian cities in recent weeks.
The military official stated in a statement, "As a result of the downing operations, debris from one of the drones fell onto an apartment at a high altitude, causing a fire." Emergency services indicated that 27 people, including three children, were injured, but the fire was quickly extinguished and 12 individuals were rescued from the building.
Ukrainian Governor of Poltava region, Dmytro Lunin, reported on Saturday that Russia fired missiles and attack drones at the central Ukrainian region during the night, causing some damage to infrastructure and equipment at the Mirgorod military airport. He noted via Telegram that the attack, which involved ballistic and cruise missiles, also damaged eight homes and several vehicles. No casualties were reported.
On another note, the British government stated on Saturday that both Ukrainian and Russian forces have made varied progress in southern and eastern Ukraine over the past 48 hours. The UK Ministry of Defense mentioned in a statement, "In some areas, Ukrainian forces have likely made good progress and breached the first line of Russian defenses. In other areas, Ukrainian progress has been slower." It added, "The performance of Russian forces has been mixed, with some units likely conducting reliable defensive maneuvers while others are withdrawing somewhat chaotically, amid increasing reports of Russian casualties as they retreat across their own minefields."
