30-4-2024 (ODESA) A Russian ballistic missile slammed into an educational institution situated within a popular seafront park in the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa on Monday, killing at least five people and wounding 32 others, local authorities have confirmed. The brazen attack has drawn widespread condemnation as another egregious Russian strike on a civilian target.
Regional governor Oleh Kiper, writing on Telegram, stated that in addition to the five fatalities from the missile hit itself, one man died after suffering a stroke believed to have been induced by the blast. Of the 32 injured, eight were listed in serious condition, including a 4-year-old child. Another child and a pregnant woman were also among the casualties.
Footage from the scene showed the ornate building housing a private law academy left with its roof almost entirely destroyed by the ferocious impact. Firefighters were captured dousing small fires still smouldering in the structure’s shattered husk as acrid smoke billowed skyward.
Urusi inakaribia kuuteka mji wa Odesa, vikosi maalum kuanza uvamizi kulingana na Wizara ya Ulinzi ya Urusi pic.twitter.com/KehCfHePX3
— james agent (@ErnestKavol4) April 30, 2024
“Monsters. Beasts. Savages. Scum. I don’t know what else to say,” an outraged Odesa Mayor Hennadii Trukhanov declared in a video statement. “People are going for a walk by the sea and they are shooting and killing.”
Earlier images posted online depicted the law academy engulfed in flames immediately after the strike. Unverified videos also appeared to show bloodied victims receiving emergency treatment on the street near fragments suspected to be missile debris.
One student at the academy, identifying herself only as Maria, recounted how the blaze erupted after Ukrainian defences intercepted the incoming Russian missile just in front of the building. “My doors were blown open and the glass was shaking. And then I saw this,” she told Reuters, gesturing at the smouldering ruins, adding they had narrowly avoided being outside when the strike occurred.
Ukrainian navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk stated the strike was conducted using an Iskander-M ballistic missile equipped with a cluster munition warhead – a weapon internationally condemned for its indiscriminate area effects.
The attack critically injured Serhiy Kivalov, a former prominent lawmaker who serves as president of the private law academy, according to public broadcaster Suspilne. No groups have claimed responsibility, but Odesa’s critical port infrastructure has frequently emerged as a prime Russian target during the invasion.
