Russia launches overnight strikes on Ukraine, hits Black Sea vessels

Russia carried out a large overnight barrage of drones and missiles across Ukraine, with officials reporting civilian deaths in the Kharkiv and Kherson regions and damage to infrastructure in several areas. Ukraine's air force said the attack involved 174 drones and two Zircon anti-ship missiles launched overnight. It said air defences intercepted or jammed 141 of the incoming targets, with impacts recorded in 15 locations and debris falling in nine others.

Sponsored

In the Kharkiv region, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said attacks across 14 settlements killed five people and injured 15 more. He said the strikes caused heavy destruction in places including Balakliya and Lypkuvativka. In the Kherson region, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said shelling across 25 communities killed three people and injured five others, while also damaging high-rise apartments, private homes, a cell tower and a gas pipeline.

Russia's defence ministry separately claimed its forces struck two commercial vessels in the Black Sea, including a Ukrainian dry cargo ship heading to Odesa and a tanker docked in the port of Odesa. It said both ships were carrying military supplies. Ukraine's air force said the two Zircon missiles launched from Russia's Kursk region did not reach their targets.

The reported maritime strikes add to the scale of the overnight assault, which also extended to the Dnipropetrovsk region, where officials said drones, artillery and aerial bombs hit four areas more than 10 times. The attack matters because it combines mass aerial strikes with claims of targeting commercial shipping near Odesa, a key Black Sea port for Ukraine. Maritime security in the Black Sea has been a recurring concern during the war, especially as both sides have accused each other of threatening civilian and commercial traffic.

Sponsored

Any confirmed strike on vessels near Odesa would raise further questions about the safety of shipping routes and the resilience of Ukraine's export infrastructure. The overnight assault also showed the continued strain on Ukraine's air defences and regional emergency services. In Dnipropetrovsk, officials said two people were injured and damage was reported to warehouses in Dnipro, an outpatient clinic in Pavlohrad, a shopping centre in Nikopol and homes in Kryvyi Rih and Synelnyky.

Poland also scrambled fighter jets and put its air defence systems on high readiness as the wider attack unfolded near its border, underlining the regional security impact of the strikes. What remains unclear is the full extent of the damage at sea and whether the vessels named by Russia were hit as claimed. It is also not yet clear how many of the reported casualties are directly linked to the overnight barrage versus earlier shelling in the same regions.

Further official assessments are likely to focus on the condition of the Black Sea shipping routes, the scale of destruction in eastern and southern Ukraine, and whether the attack prompts any additional regional military response.

#Ukraine #Russia #BlackSea #Odesa #Kharkivregion #Khersonregion #drones #missiles

Sponsored