The Ukrainian Air Force reported a new night attack by Russian drones on Monday, saying it shot down 28 of the 31 devices fired, as Ukrainians celebrate Christmas on December 25 for the first time in their history, rather than January 7 like Orthodox Russians.
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This attack using Iranian-made Shahed drones targeted the southern regions of Odessa, Kherson, Mykolaiv, the eastern Donetsk region and the western Khmelnytsky region, Ukrainian forces said on Telegram.
“During the airstrike, the enemy also fired a Kh-59 air-guided missile towards Zaporizhzhia (south) and a Kh-31P anti-radar missile from the waters of the Black Sea. Both were shot!” the Air Force added.
In Odessa, a large port on the Black Sea, debris from a downed drone damaged port areas and buildings in a district. They also damaged an out-of-service administrative building and a warehouse and caused a fire that was “quickly extinguished,” the Ukrainian army's Southern Command said.
According to them, no injuries were reported.
Russia regularly attacks Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles, which are usually shot down by Ukrainian air defenses.
Ukraine, for its part, regularly bombs Russian border regions or Russian-occupied cities like Donetsk. Several drones also targeted the Russian capital Moscow last year.
The predominantly Orthodox Ukrainians are celebrating Christmas on Sunday for the first time, in sync with the Western world, and no longer on January 7th as before, a sign of defiance towards Moscow.
Russia says it has taken control of Mariinka in eastern Ukraine
Photo AFP
The Russian army has taken control of the town of Mariinka near Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Monday, a claim but denied by the Ukrainian army.
A Ukrainian army spokesman, Oleksandr Chtoupoun, said it was “wrong” to say the city was completely controlled by the Russians.
“The battle for Marinka continues,” he said, adding that Ukrainian soldiers were still in the town, which was “completely destroyed.”
“The town of Marinka, located five kilometers southwest of Donetsk, was completely liberated today,” Shoigu said earlier in a television interview with President Vladimir Putin.
Marinka had been converted into a stronghold by the Ukrainian army since 2014 and began a conflict with pro-Russian separatists led by Moscow, who had taken over the city of Donetsk in particular.
According to Mr. Shoigu, Marinka is “a powerful fortified area connected by underground passages” that protect it from artillery and air attacks. “Thanks to the decisive action of our soldiers, the fortress was blown up,” he said.
“The liberation of the site, of course, reduces the defensive capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and gives us additional opportunities to continue our action in this direction,” he added.
Mr. Putin welcomed the fact that the capture of Marinka keeps Ukrainian troops out of Donetsk, the regional capital under Russian control that has been a regular target of Ukrainian bombings since 2014.
“We have significantly reduced the artillery's field of action near Donetsk (…) and this now enables a more effective defense of Donetsk against attacks,” emphasized Mr. Shoigu.
Marinka as a fortified zone “gives our troops the opportunity to have a larger operational space,” Vladimir Putin said.
Since the failure of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, Russian forces have regained the initiative at the front and have gained ground, particularly in the east.
In particular, they have been trying for several months to surround another fortress, that of Avdiivka, also to the east.