Russia attacks Reni port in Odesa region with 'kamikaze' drones, Romania reacts

Head of the Odesa regional military administration, Oleh Kiper, reported this.

He noted that the number of victims had increased to seven. Two of them were treated on the spot. Five were hospitalized, one of whom is in a serious condition in intensive care. Patient’s condition has been stabilized and he is being prepared to be transferred to a highly specialized medical facility.

As of 08:00, he reported six victims.

"Four wounded were hospitalized in the region, one of them is in moderate to serious condition. Doctors managed to stabilize the patient. The other three were hospitalized with light shrapnel wounds and bruises. All were provided with full medical assistance," said Kiper.

The hit destroyed a grain warehouse and damaged storage tanks. A fire broke out in one of the technical rooms, which has already been extinguished.

Ihor Plekhov, the head of the Reni community, reported that during the night attack by Shahed drones, the Russian army struck their port.

It is reported that three grain warehouses were destroyed. About 15 Shaheds were spotted. Residents of Reni and neighboring villages heard a series of explosions.

The blast wave also damaged the windows of buildings and houses in the Reni port. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire.

Earlier, the Operational Command South reported that a nearly 4-hour attack by Shahed-136 drones was launched against the Danube port infrastructure that night. Air defense forces destroyed 3 Russian drones.

The command also published a photo of the consequences of hitting a grain depot.

Earlier, Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the Odesa regional military administration, also spoke about the attack on Odesa region. According to him, an air raid alert was announced for 3 hours and 53 minutes in Odesa region. The enemy tried to attack the south of the region with Shaheds. Bratchuk emphasized that air defense forces downed several Shaheds, but there were hits to the infrastructure. 

"We see that the enemy continues to purposefully attack the port infrastructure of the south of our country," the spokesman said.

Romania's response to the attack

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis condemned Russia's attack on the port infrastructure of the city of Reni.

"I strongly condemn the recent Russian attacks against the Ukrainian civilian infrastructure on Danube, very close to Romania. This recent escalation poses serious risks to the security in the Black Sea. It also affects further Ukrainian grain transit and thus the global food security," he tweeted. 

The Romanian Ministry of National Defense issued a separate statement in which it emphasized that it strongly condemns the aggressive war against Ukraine waged by the Russian Federation and the unjustified and illegal attacks on civilians and critical infrastructure of Ukraine, which violate all international rules, as well as moral and humanitarian norms.

At the same time, the Romanian Defense Ministry's press service added that it was clarifying the security situation in the Black Sea region and noted that no direct threat to Romania had been identified.

"As for the security situation near the Romanian borders, according to the assessments of the competent bodies of the Ministry of Defense, there are no potential direct military threats to our national territory or Romanian territorial waters," the ministry said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Romanian media reported that six Romanian ships were at the port of Reni at the time of the attack. They urgently crossed the Danube and headed for the Romanian coast after the Russians attacked the area with drones.

No traffic restrictions were imposed on the Romanian side of the Danube. Activities in Romanian ports in the area continue as usual.

Missile attack on Odesa on July 23

On the night of July 23, the Russian army attacked Odesa with at least 5 types of missiles. As of the morning, one person was killed and 22 others were injured in the attack. It was the fifth consecutive nighttime massive missile attack on Odesa and Odesa region in the last six days.

Later, the Operational Command "South" stated that during the missile attack at night, the enemy hit Odesa region with at least 5 types of missiles of all types of basing: "Kalibr", " Oniks", Kh-22 and "Iskander-K", and also used ballistic "Iskander-M".

The Russians destroyed port infrastructure, at least 6 residential buildings, including apartment buildings. Dozens of cars were damaged, facades and roofs of many buildings in the city were damaged, and windows were smashed. Two architectural monuments were damaged.

During the attack, Russians also destroyed the Transfiguration Cathedral, the largest Orthodox church in Odesa, and the House of Scientists. In addition to significant damage to the building, Orthodox shrines were damaged: the Kasperovska Icon of the Mother of God, the patron saint of Odesa, was pulled from the rubble.

On the night of July 23, air defense units in Odesa region destroyed 9 out of 19 enemy air targets - 4 Kalibr sea-launched cruise missiles and 5 Iskander-K land-based cruise missiles.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted to the Russian shelling of Odesa and noted that the enemy would definitely be responsible for this crime. And Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called on all states and organizations to "condemn this barbaric war crime."

Later, National Security and Defense Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said that Russia was trying to completely isolate Ukraine's access to the Black Sea. 

The President's Office also responded to the Russian missile attack on Odesa. They explained what Russia really wants by attacking historical city centers and how the world should respond to Russian crimes.

According to Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kyiv and All Ukraine, the destruction of the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa is another manifestation of the satanic evil of the Russian world.

The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the alleged cause of the destruction of the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa on the night of July 23 was the fall of a Ukrainian air defense missile. The Center for Countering Disinformation denied the fake.

In the evening, Zelenskyy said that the Russians had also damaged the Greek consular building during the attack. 

After that, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) expressed "deep concern" and condemned Russia's missile attack on cultural sites in Odesa. They also emphasized that in the coming days the organization will send a mission to the city to conduct a preliminary assessment of the damage. And United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Russia to immediately stop its attacks on Ukrainians and cultural sites.