- Russia struck the Ukrainian port city of Odesa on the Black Sea on Sunday.
- The Russian defense ministry confirmed oil facilities were hit with “high-precision sea and air-based missiles.”
- Ukrainian officials said that there are no known casualties so far from the strike.
Russia struck the Ukrainian port city of Odesa with multiple airstrikes early on Sunday, Russian and Ukrainian officials said.
Odesa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov said on Facebook that Russia had hit “critical infrastructure” in the attack.
The strategic Black Sea port city that is the main base for Ukraine’s navy is a key objective for Russian forces, as if captured, they could cut off Ukraine’s access to the sea.
With the failure of its campaign around Kyiv, Putin’s forces are expected to concentrate their offensive on Ukraine’s south and east.
The Russian defense ministry confirmed that it targeted oil facilities that Ukraine was using to supply its troops blocking Russia’s advance from the east.
“This morning, high-precision sea and air-based missiles destroyed an oil refinery and three storage facilities for fuel and lubricants near Odesa, from which fuel was supplied to a group of Ukrainian troops in the direction of Mykolaiv,” it said, according to AFP.
AFP reporters said they heard explosions in the southwestern port city at around 6:00 am local time.
A video posted on social media claimed to show the moment the strikes hit.
—OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) April 3, 2022
A Ukranian security officer stands with a member the press as smoke rises after an attack by Russian army in Odesa, on April 3, 2022. Bulent Kilic/AFP via Getty Images
Smoke rises after an attack by Russian army in Odessa, on April 3, 2022. BULENT KILIC/AFP via Getty Images
Dmytro Lunin, the governor of Ukraine’s Poltava region, where the oil refinery is, said, “the fire at the refinery has been extinguished, but the facility has been completely destroyed and can no longer function,” Reuters reported.
Ukrainian officials said no known casualties so far from the strike.
Odesa’s city council claimed on Telegram that Ukrainian forces had shot down two Russian naval-based cruise missiles on Sunday.