Russian air attacks have reportedly continued across Ukraine, after days of intense strikes on cities including Odesa.
The Ukrainian port town has been the target of missile strikes for a number of days. It comes within the context of Russia scrapping a grain export deal with Ukraine. Since then, Moscow has pounded port areas and damaged some of the city’s oldest and most beautiful buildings.
For its part, the Ukrainian airforce says it shot down 36 cruise missiles fired by Russia. It’s not clear if any others hit their intended targets.
Firefighters caught up in shelling
Elsewhere in Ukraine, firefighters came under artillery fire as they tackled wildfires in Toretsk, in the Donetsk region.
The area is close to frontline combat in the Donetsk territory, where intense shelling is a regular occurrence.
Bodycam footage shows emergency personnel beating out flames from shrubs before the sound of shelling interrupts their efforts and forces the firefighters to withdraw, leaving fields ablaze.
In a text shared alongside the video, the ministry said that the fires were initially started by previous Russian shelling.
Ukraine’s counteroffenisve
Fighting on the ground is also said to be intensifying in some areas. Bodycam footage shows Ukrainian soldiers caught in the ferocity of a battle in Luhansk, but there were also reports of gains by Ukrainian forces near Bakhmut, and a renewed push by Ukrainian forces around Zaporizhzhia.
The pace of Ukraine’s counteroffensive is building slowly, with more Western weapons arriving on a daily basis. But with Russian positions well defended, advances so far have been more incremental than spectacular.
