• Russia razed a part of an apartment building near the Ukrainian port of Odesa while its residents slept.
• At least 21 people were killed, including a 12-year-old boy, local officials said.
• Russian troops had just hours earlier abandoned the Black Sea stronghold of Snake Island.

UKRAINE: Russia razed a part of an apartment building near the Ukrainian port of Odessa while its residents slept on Friday, killing at least 21 people, as per Ukrainian authorities, just hours after Russian troops abandoned the Black Sea stronghold of Snake Island.

Residents of the resort town of Serhiivka helped workers sort through the broken pieces of the nine-story apartment building, which had been damaged by the strike early in the morning.

The explosion wave caused damage to the walls and windows of a nearby 14-story residential building. Nearby summer camps were also affected.

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We assisted in carrying them away “when he heard the explosion, Oleksandr Abramov, who lives nearby, raced to the scene.

Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the Odessa regional government, said that 21 people had been confirmed dead, including a 12-year-old boy.

A staffer of the Children’s Rehabilitation Center established by Ukraine’s neighbour Moldova in the resort was among the victims.

The regional governor stated that the rockets were launched from the Black Sea.

The Kremlin denied civilian targeting.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated, “I would like to remind you of the president’s words that the Russian Armed Forces do not work with civilian targets.”

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