KYIV, Ukraine — Russian ballistic missiles hit homes in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa on Friday, and a second missile struck first responders at the scene. Officials reported at least 16 deaths.
The attack happened as Russians started voting in a presidential election that will likely give Vladimir Putin another six years in power, following his suppression of dissent, while the war in Ukraine continues into its third year.
Among the dead were a paramedic and an emergency worker. At least 53 others were injured by the Iskander-M missiles, officials said.
At least 10 houses in Odesa and some emergency service equipment were damaged in the strike, which caused a fire, according to emergency officials and regional Gov. Oleh Kiper.
The strategy of launching a second missile at the same location, with the intent of hitting rescuers, is known in military terms as a double tap. These attacks often harm civilians.
Kiper declared that Odesa would observe a day of mourning on Saturday, the second such observance in less than two weeks.
On March 2, a Russian drone targeted a multistory building, killing 12 people, including five children.
Moscow has often claimed that its forces do not target civilian areas, despite ample evidence to the contrary.
Since last summer, Russia has escalated its attacks on Odesa, a southern port city with a population of around 1 million.
The attacks have mainly focused on port infrastructure, aiming to disrupt the export of goods after Ukraine managed to restore maritime navigation in the Black Sea through successful operations.
Moscow officials have also alleged that they are targeting facilities where Ukrainian sea drones are stored for attacks on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
The ports in the Odesa region played a crucial role in last year’s international agreement that allowed Ukraine and Russia to ship their grain to other countries.
Most people in Odesa speak Russian, and the city’s history is connected to some of Russia’s most esteemed figures, including Catherine the Great, author Leo Tolstoy, and poet Anna Akhmatova.
Its Orthodox cathedral is part of Moscow’s patriarchate and its beaches were loved by Russian tourists, at least until the Kremlin illegally annexed the nearby Crimean Peninsula in 2014.
Meanwhile, in the Russian border region of Belgorod, regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said a member of the regional territorial defense forces was killed and two people were injured in Ukrainian shelling on Friday.
During the night in Ukraine, two people were also killed and three wounded in the central Vinnytsia region after Russia targeted a building with a drone, according to regional Gov. Serhii Borzov.
The Ukrainian air force claimed to have shot down all 27 Shahed drones that Russia deployed over the Kharkiv, Vinnytsia, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Khmelnytskyi, and Kyiv regions.
