Russia launched a missile attack on the Odesa region on July 26, 2023, targeting port infrastructure.
The attack occurred during the night and involved the firing of two Kalibr missiles from a submarine stationed in the Black Sea.
Eight Iranian kamikaze drones, known as Shahed-136/131 were also launched from Primosko-Akhtarsk in Krasnodar Krai and targeted other areas of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Air Force reports having destroyed all loitering munitions in the Khmelnytskyi, Dnipropetrovsk, and Donetsk regions but failed to intercept the Kalibr missiles targeted at Odesa.
“A civilian guard lost his life as a result of the missile strike,” regional governor Oleh Kiper said on Telegram. “Additionally, one of the cargo terminals suffered extensive damage, and a security building along with two cars was completely destroyed.”
According to Natalya Gumenyuk, head of the joint press center of Ukraine’s Southern Operational Command, Russia took advantage of weather conditions and launched missiles “during a windy thunderstorm, at extremely low altitude, to complicate their detection.”
Over the past few days, the region of Odesa has been facing relentless Russian attacks with the aim of destroying its grain export infrastructure after the Black Sea Grain Initiative came to an end on July 17, 2023.
On July 23, 2023, Russian strikes also damaged several monuments in the historic center of Odesa, including the Cathedral of the Transfiguration. The attack left six dead and 22 injured.
