06 November, 2023
Russia began a series of attacks on Odesa, resulting in 8 casualties, damage to an art museum, and the destruction of heavy good vehicles.
The Kremlin on November 6 had launched 22 Iranian-made “Shahed” drones, and X-59 missiles which, according to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, damaged 20 multi-storey buildings and 20 cars. Ukraine’s Air Defence claimed it shot down 15 of the 22 drones, according to the news outlet Reuters.
In response to the damage of Odea’s National Art Museum, the Governor for Odesa, Oleh Kiper, said: “On November 6, the Odesa National Art Museum turns 124 years old.” He added, “On the eve of November 6, the Russians ‘congratulated’ our architectural monument with a missile that hit nearby.”
Rockets hit the city centre and an industrial building that was no longer in use.
The blast wave damaged several high-rise residential buildings and a museum in the historic part of the city (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
The Russians directed the "Shahed-131/136" strike drones at the port infrastructure of Odessa.
Olef said in on the Telegram that “15 drones were destroyed by our air defense forces. The impact damaged warehouses, special unloading equipment, and cars with grain. The fire was extinguished promptly. Law enforcement officers are recording another terrorist crime.”
Moscow’s attack on Odesa came a day after Ukraine destroyed a Russian warship, carrying Kalibr missiles in a harbour in Russian occupied Crimea.
Ukraine had also attacked an ammo depot on the coast of the Sea of Azov on November 6. Petro Andriyushchenko, adviser to the exiled mayor of Mariupol, said in a Telegram post that none of the ammunition in the warehouse could be saved: “It will keep detonating until morning for sure. People on the spot say that only a part of the warehouse is now destroyed, but nothing can be saved there.”
Russia also attacked a Ukraine military award ceremony on November 3 near the front lines in Zaporizhzhia, resulting in the death of 19 soldiers, Ukrainian unit have said.
[Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty] [BBC]
The open-air ceremony was set to celebrate the 128th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade, a military unit based in Zakarpattia. According to the Ukraine army, “(Russia) fired an Iskander-M missile at the personnel of the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade, killing the soldiers and causing injuries of varying severity to local residents.” [VOA News]
The head of state for Zakarpattia, Viktor Mykyta, said: “Our brothers-in-arms, the soldiers of the 128th Brigade, who defended Ukraine's independence from the occupiers with their own lives, were tragically killed in the area of combat operations,”
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has said that the tragedy “could have been avoided”, and a BBC correspondent posted on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that “collaborators have been accused of tipping the Russians off about events like this in the past.”
Zelenskiy said on social media that an investigation is underway: “criminal proceedings have been initiated”. He added that: “every soldier in the combat zone – in the enemy’s line of fire and aerial reconnaissance – knows how to behave in the open, how to ensure safety.”
Speaking to the Russian state news agency, the Moscow-installed head of state in the Zaporizhzhia region Yevgeny Balitsky said that this attack further indicated a halt to Ukraine’s counter offensive, which initiated in June 2023.
"The enemy has been stopped and their counter-offensive, which has been so hyped, has been completely halted," Balitsky told the Russian state news agency in remarks published on November 6. [Reuters]
Zelensky has been urging other nations to help in its air defense against Russia’s invasion. He said,:"We need to save our country. That's why one of the ways is to co-produce air defence."
"But during this time, during our co-production, our message to the world, to the United States, to Europe, to Asia: to give us some air defence systems, just to use them, just to rent them, rent for this period, especially winter. Winter [is a] very challenging period."
"It's very important not to lose the will, not to lose this strong position, and not to lose your democracy." [sky news]
Speaking to the NBC news outlet, Mr Zelensky also NATO member states of the consequences of a successful Russian invasion of Ukraine: “Russia must leave our territory. After that, the world can turn to diplomacy. And our Peace Formula provides a good opportunity in this regard”.
“What is the alternative? Giving Putin the chance to kill us all? Destroy our nation and everything we still have?”
“This is not just a matter of Ukraine. This is a matter of security in Europe. It's a matter of NATO's unity. Because after Ukraine, Russia will target NATO countries”.
But the war has taken a toll on the Russian economy, according a statement from the UK Ministry of Defence posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Due to increasing demand, partially due to large increases in defence spending, along with continued pressures of a tightening labour market”.
Russia’s well-known human rights campaigner, Oleg Orlov told Reuters in July that “"Russia is going backwards… "We left Communist totalitarianism but now have returned to a different kind of totalitarianism."
Share This Post On
0 comments
Leave a comment
You need to login to leave a comment. Log-in
