Russia targets Odesa port following deadly strikes in southern Ukraine. Here's the latest
From CNN staff
A Russian attack hit port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Odesa region overnight, sparking a fire and injuring at least one civilian, a Ukrainian official said Monday.
Moscow's forces have repeatedly attacked Odesa in recent months, targeting Ukrainian grain infrastructure following the collapse of the Black Sea grain deal.
It comes after Russian shelling killed three people and wounded at least nine others Sunday in the southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, Ukrainian officials said.
Here are some of the other latest developments from the war in Ukraine:
Grain transit: Poland has prepared transit corridors that will allow Ukrainian grain shipments to move through its territory and reach the countries most in need, President Andrzej Duda said Sunday. The comments are notable because the Polish government has joined Hungary and Slovakia in extending a ban on cheap Ukrainian grain imports, which they say have undercut local farmers.
Pope on "martyrs": Pope Francis on Saturday told journalists that the withholding of weapons to Ukraine is turning the Ukrainian people into "martyrs." The Pope also spoke of the "paradox" of countries supplying Ukraine with weapons before taking them away. The pontiff was possibly referring to the recent decision by Poland to stop providing weapons to Ukraine, amid a growing dispute between the two countries over the temporary ban on Ukrainian grain imports.
New battlefield video: The Ukrainian military on Sunday released additional footage from the battle for the village of Andriivka, a small hamlet immediately south of the city of Bakhmut, which Kyiv's forces say they reclaimed on September 15. Liberating Andriivka was considered a key step in the fight for Bakhmut, Maksym Zhorin, deputy commander of Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade, said at the time.
DPR curfew: A curfew and a communications censorship took effect Sunday in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic in eastern Ukraine, according to Russian state media. The curfew will last from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. on weekdays, starting on Monday, according to a decree signed by the region’s Russia-backed leader, Denis Pushilin, state news agency TASS reported. An additional decree imposes a military censorship on mail, internet communications and phone conversations, TASS said.
18 min ago
Russian strikes hit Odesa port, Ukrainian official says
From CNN's Josh Pennington and Irene Nasser
A Russian attack hit port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Odesa region overnight, sparking a fire and injuring at least one civilian, a Ukrainian official said Monday.
In a Telegram post, Oleh Kiper, head of the Odesa' regional military administration, said a woman suffered shrapnel injuries following the attack, which included drones and two types of missiles.
A "fire broke out in a non-residential high-rise in Odesa and was quickly extinguished," he said. "There was also damage to a warehouse and a private house in the Odesa area."
Russia has repeatedly attacked Odesa in recent months, targeting Ukrainian grain infrastructure following the collapse of the Black Sea grain deal.
3 hr 43 min ago
Poland is creating routes for Ukrainian grain to reach countries in need, president says
From CNN's Radina Gigova and Svitlana Vlasova
Poland has prepared transit corridors that will allow Ukrainian grain shipments to move through its territory and reach the countries most in need, President Andrzej Duda said Sunday.
The comments are notable because the Polish government has joined Hungary and Slovakia in extending a ban on cheap Ukrainian grain imports, which they say have undercut local farmers. Speaking Sunday, Duda said Poland will however still help shipments reach their final destination.
During a speech at a Ukraine recovery summit on Friday, Duda said the grain dispute with Ukraine will not have a serious impact on the relations between the two countries, as they have a "historic dimension," according to state news agency PAP.
"We are trying to help Ukraine and those countries that require this help. I believe that it is the right decision that the Polish government has maintained the ban on the sale of Ukrainian grain on the Polish market," Duda said in an interview with Polish television channel TVP1 on Sunday. "However, we must do everything to ensure that transit is as great as possible," Duda added, according to a statement by his office.
Some context: Kyiv and Warsaw have publicly feuded this week over the grain issue and the question of supplying weapons.
In remarks on Thursday, Duda also tried to clarify statements by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who had said that Poland will stop weapons deliveries to Ukraine, after President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday that "some of our friends in Europe, play out solidarity in a political theater."
After a week of tense back and forth between Kyiv and Warsaw, Morawiecki shot back at Zelensky on Friday, saying he should never "insult Poles again."
3 hr 34 min ago
Russian attacks kill at least 2 in Kherson, officials say
From CNN's Svitlana Vlasova and Radina Gigova
Russian attacks Sunday killed at least two people and wounded at least nine others in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, Ukrainian authorities said.
"The enemy dropped two aerial bombs on the city (of Kherson)," Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the region's military administration, said in a Telegram post.
One strike hit an industrial area and the other hit civilian infrastructure, an official said.
A 49-year-old woman working as a security guard was among those wounded in the bombings, Prokudin said.
A total of six people were injured in Kherson city, Roman Mrochko, the head of the Kherson city military administration, said in a Telegram post.
More have been wounded elsewhere in the region: Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office said earlier Sunday that two people had been killed and three were injured in attacks near the city of Beryslav.
Meanwhile, A 53-year-old man died as a result of a Russian artillery strike on Zaporizhzhia on Sunday, according to Yurii Malashko, the head of the region's military administration.
3 hr 49 min ago
Video shows advance of Ukraine's military near Andriivka
From CNN's Svitlana Vlasova and Radina Gigova
The Ukrainian military on Sunday released additional footage from the battle for the village of Andriivka, a small hamlet immediately to the south of the city of Bakhmut, that was reclaimed from Russian forces earlier this month.
Liberating Andriivka is considered a key step in the fight for Bakhmut, Maksym Zhorin, deputy commander of the Third Separate Assault Brigade said at the time.
The video, released by Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade, which fought for control of the village, shows fighters from the brigade's 1st assault battalion advancing through "a forest belt scorched by the fighting."
The brigade said its fighters were engaged "in close combat and clearing out enemy dugouts and holes." When brigade fighters entered the streets of Andriivka, they witnessed that the village had been "wiped out."
"Only mountains of concrete, brick and metal fragments remind us that there were buildings here," the brigade said.
Some context: Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade recaptured Andriivka on September 15, it announced on Telegram that day. They are now trying to consolidate their gain there to hold on to it.
Russian forces claimed control of Bakhmut in May following a months-long slog in the city. The Russian advance was bolstered by members of the Wagner mercenary group, which incurred heavy losses in the fierce fighting.
CNN's Mariya Knight contributed to this report.
3 hr 55 min ago
Withholding weapons is turning Ukrainians into martyrs, Pope says
From CNN's Antonia Mortensen in Rome
Pope Francis on Saturday told journalists that the withholding of weapons to Ukraine is turning the Ukrainian people into "martyrs."
The Pope made the comments during a news conference on a flight back to Rome's Fiumicino airport following a two-day trip to Marseille.
The Pope told journalists: "Now we are seeing that some countries are pulling back, they're not giving weapons. A process is starting where the martyrs will be the Ukrainian people, and this is an ugly thing."
Pope Francis also spoke of the "paradox" of countries supplying Ukraine with weapons before taking them away, which was keeping Ukrainians a "martyred people."
"Those who traffic in arms never have to pay the consequences of their choices, but leave them to be paid by martyred peoples, such as the Ukrainian people," he said.
Some context: The pontiff was possibly referring to the recent decision by Poland to stop providing weapons to Ukraine, amid a dispute between the two countries over a temporary ban on Ukrainian grain imports.
When asked for clarification, Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni said the Pope was not taking a stand on whether countries should continue to send weapons to Ukraine or stop sending them, according to Reuters.
Rather, his comments were a "reflection on the consequences of the arms industry: the Pope, with a paradox, was saying that those who traffic in weapons never pay the consequences of their choices but leave them to be paid by people, like the Ukrainians, who have been martyred," Bruni said.
3 hr 56 min ago
What we know about the attack on Russia's Black Sea Fleet headquarters
From CNN staff
Ukraine launched one of its most ambitious attacks yet on Crimea Friday, targeting Russia's Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Sevastopol. The Crimean peninsula was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, and Ukraine has vowed to reclaim it.
Here's what we know:
What happened? Ukraine said its forces carried out a “successful” missile attack on the naval HQ. A fire broke out in the aftermath of the attack, which also left debris scattered hundreds of meters away. Plumes of smoke could be seen pouring from the building, while officials also said shrapnel landed in a nearby theater.
What has Ukraine said? The country’s Special Operations Forces said Saturday that the strike was timed for when senior members of Russia's navy were convening and has left dozens dead and wounded, “including senior leadership.” Ukrainian officials have commented on the strike, with the chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People in Ukraine, Refat Chubarov, thanking those involved in the operation to "liberate" Crimea. Another Ukrainian official said Russia's Black Sea Fleet could be "sliced up like a salami."
What has Russia said?Russia’s Ministry of Defense has said so far only one soldier is missing following the attack. "As a result of the attack, the historical headquarters building of the Black Sea Fleet was damaged," the defense ministry said, adding that five missiles were shot down by their air defense systems. CNN has not been able to verify Ukraine's claim it killed Russian naval leaders.
What does it mean for the war? Hitting Russian facilities on occupied Crimea is a display of Ukraine's confidence — and the vulnerability of said vital infrastructure. There are plenty of reasons for Ukraine to target Crimea. It’s a sign that despite the slow progress on the front lines in its counteroffensive, Ukraine can still inflict serious damage on the Russian military. Targets such as the Crimea bridge have considerable symbolic value as well as strategic purpose. Ukrainian Defense Intelligence spokesperson Andrii Yusov said “the ultimate goal, of course, is the de-occupation of Ukrainian Crimea.”
An administrative building in the Russian city of Kursk was hit by a Ukrainian drone on Sunday, according to the region's governor Roman Starovoit.
"In Kursk, a Ukrainian drone attacked an administrative building in the Central district. The roof was slightly damaged. Employees of operational services rushed to the site," he said on Telegram.
Starovoit did not mention if there were injuries.
A Russian attack hit port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Odesa region overnight, sparking a fire and injuring at least one civilian, a Ukrainian official said Monday.
It comes after Russian shelling killed at least three people and wounded nine others Sunday in the southern Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, Ukrainian officials said.
Poland has prepared routes for Ukrainian grain to move through its territory and reach countries most in need, President Andrzej Duda said. Warsaw publicly feuded with Kyiv last week over grain imports and the question of supplying weapons.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the US is "directly at war" with Russia in remarks at the UN General Assembly on Saturday, where he slammed the countries aiding Ukraine's defense.
A Russian attack hit port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Odesa region overnight, sparking a fire and injuring at least one civilian, a Ukrainian official said Monday.
Moscow's forces have repeatedly attacked Odesa in recent months, targeting Ukrainian grain infrastructure following the collapse of the Black Sea grain deal.
It comes after Russian shelling killed three people and wounded at least nine others Sunday in the southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, Ukrainian officials said.
Here are some of the other latest developments from the war in Ukraine:
Grain transit: Poland has prepared transit corridors that will allow Ukrainian grain shipments to move through its territory and reach the countries most in need, President Andrzej Duda said Sunday. The comments are notable because the Polish government has joined Hungary and Slovakia in extending a ban on cheap Ukrainian grain imports, which they say have undercut local farmers.
Pope on "martyrs": Pope Francis on Saturday told journalists that the withholding of weapons to Ukraine is turning the Ukrainian people into "martyrs." The Pope also spoke of the "paradox" of countries supplying Ukraine with weapons before taking them away. The pontiff was possibly referring to the recent decision by Poland to stop providing weapons to Ukraine, amid a growing dispute between the two countries over the temporary ban on Ukrainian grain imports.
New battlefield video: The Ukrainian military on Sunday released additional footage from the battle for the village of Andriivka, a small hamlet immediately south of the city of Bakhmut, which Kyiv's forces say they reclaimed on September 15. Liberating Andriivka was considered a key step in the fight for Bakhmut, Maksym Zhorin, deputy commander of Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade, said at the time.
DPR curfew: A curfew and a communications censorship took effect Sunday in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic in eastern Ukraine, according to Russian state media. The curfew will last from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. on weekdays, starting on Monday, according to a decree signed by the region’s Russia-backed leader, Denis Pushilin, state news agency TASS reported. An additional decree imposes a military censorship on mail, internet communications and phone conversations, TASS said.
A Russian attack hit port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Odesa region overnight, sparking a fire and injuring at least one civilian, a Ukrainian official said Monday.
In a Telegram post, Oleh Kiper, head of the Odesa' regional military administration, said a woman suffered shrapnel injuries following the attack, which included drones and two types of missiles.
A "fire broke out in a non-residential high-rise in Odesa and was quickly extinguished," he said. "There was also damage to a warehouse and a private house in the Odesa area."
Russia has repeatedly attacked Odesa in recent months, targeting Ukrainian grain infrastructure following the collapse of the Black Sea grain deal.
Poland has prepared transit corridors that will allow Ukrainian grain shipments to move through its territory and reach the countries most in need, President Andrzej Duda said Sunday.
The comments are notable because the Polish government has joined Hungary and Slovakia in extending a ban on cheap Ukrainian grain imports, which they say have undercut local farmers. Speaking Sunday, Duda said Poland will however still help shipments reach their final destination.
During a speech at a Ukraine recovery summit on Friday, Duda said the grain dispute with Ukraine will not have a serious impact on the relations between the two countries, as they have a "historic dimension," according to state news agency PAP.
"We are trying to help Ukraine and those countries that require this help. I believe that it is the right decision that the Polish government has maintained the ban on the sale of Ukrainian grain on the Polish market," Duda said in an interview with Polish television channel TVP1 on Sunday. "However, we must do everything to ensure that transit is as great as possible," Duda added, according to a statement by his office.
Some context: Kyiv and Warsaw have publicly feuded this week over the grain issue and the question of supplying weapons.
In remarks on Thursday, Duda also tried to clarify statements by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who had said that Poland will stop weapons deliveries to Ukraine, after President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday that "some of our friends in Europe, play out solidarity in a political theater."
After a week of tense back and forth between Kyiv and Warsaw, Morawiecki shot back at Zelensky on Friday, saying he should never "insult Poles again."
Russian attacks Sunday killed at least two people and wounded at least nine others in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, Ukrainian authorities said.
"The enemy dropped two aerial bombs on the city (of Kherson)," Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the region's military administration, said in a Telegram post.
One strike hit an industrial area and the other hit civilian infrastructure, an official said.
A 49-year-old woman working as a security guard was among those wounded in the bombings, Prokudin said.
A total of six people were injured in Kherson city, Roman Mrochko, the head of the Kherson city military administration, said in a Telegram post.
More have been wounded elsewhere in the region: Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office said earlier Sunday that two people had been killed and three were injured in attacks near the city of Beryslav.
Meanwhile, A 53-year-old man died as a result of a Russian artillery strike on Zaporizhzhia on Sunday, according to Yurii Malashko, the head of the region's military administration.
The Ukrainian military on Sunday released additional footage from the battle for the village of Andriivka, a small hamlet immediately to the south of the city of Bakhmut, that was reclaimed from Russian forces earlier this month.
Liberating Andriivka is considered a key step in the fight for Bakhmut, Maksym Zhorin, deputy commander of the Third Separate Assault Brigade said at the time.
The video, released by Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade, which fought for control of the village, shows fighters from the brigade's 1st assault battalion advancing through "a forest belt scorched by the fighting."
The brigade said its fighters were engaged "in close combat and clearing out enemy dugouts and holes." When brigade fighters entered the streets of Andriivka, they witnessed that the village had been "wiped out."
"Only mountains of concrete, brick and metal fragments remind us that there were buildings here," the brigade said.
Some context: Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade recaptured Andriivka on September 15, it announced on Telegram that day. They are now trying to consolidate their gain there to hold on to it.
Russian forces claimed control of Bakhmut in May following a months-long slog in the city. The Russian advance was bolstered by members of the Wagner mercenary group, which incurred heavy losses in the fierce fighting.
CNN's Mariya Knight contributed to this report.
Pope Francis on Saturday told journalists that the withholding of weapons to Ukraine is turning the Ukrainian people into "martyrs."
The Pope made the comments during a news conference on a flight back to Rome's Fiumicino airport following a two-day trip to Marseille.
The Pope told journalists: "Now we are seeing that some countries are pulling back, they're not giving weapons. A process is starting where the martyrs will be the Ukrainian people, and this is an ugly thing."
Pope Francis also spoke of the "paradox" of countries supplying Ukraine with weapons before taking them away, which was keeping Ukrainians a "martyred people."
"Those who traffic in arms never have to pay the consequences of their choices, but leave them to be paid by martyred peoples, such as the Ukrainian people," he said.
Some context: The pontiff was possibly referring to the recent decision by Poland to stop providing weapons to Ukraine, amid a dispute between the two countries over a temporary ban on Ukrainian grain imports.
When asked for clarification, Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni said the Pope was not taking a stand on whether countries should continue to send weapons to Ukraine or stop sending them, according to Reuters.
Rather, his comments were a "reflection on the consequences of the arms industry: the Pope, with a paradox, was saying that those who traffic in weapons never pay the consequences of their choices but leave them to be paid by people, like the Ukrainians, who have been martyred," Bruni said.
Ukraine launched one of its most ambitious attacks yet on Crimea Friday, targeting Russia's Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Sevastopol. The Crimean peninsula was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, and Ukraine has vowed to reclaim it.
Here's what we know:
What happened? Ukraine said its forces carried out a “successful” missile attack on the naval HQ. A fire broke out in the aftermath of the attack, which also left debris scattered hundreds of meters away. Plumes of smoke could be seen pouring from the building, while officials also said shrapnel landed in a nearby theater.
What has Ukraine said? The country’s Special Operations Forces said Saturday that the strike was timed for when senior members of Russia's navy were convening and has left dozens dead and wounded, “including senior leadership.” Ukrainian officials have commented on the strike, with the chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People in Ukraine, Refat Chubarov, thanking those involved in the operation to "liberate" Crimea. Another Ukrainian official said Russia's Black Sea Fleet could be "sliced up like a salami."
What has Russia said?Russia’s Ministry of Defense has said so far only one soldier is missing following the attack. "As a result of the attack, the historical headquarters building of the Black Sea Fleet was damaged," the defense ministry said, adding that five missiles were shot down by their air defense systems. CNN has not been able to verify Ukraine's claim it killed Russian naval leaders.
What does it mean for the war? Hitting Russian facilities on occupied Crimea is a display of Ukraine's confidence — and the vulnerability of said vital infrastructure. There are plenty of reasons for Ukraine to target Crimea. It’s a sign that despite the slow progress on the front lines in its counteroffensive, Ukraine can still inflict serious damage on the Russian military. Targets such as the Crimea bridge have considerable symbolic value as well as strategic purpose. Ukrainian Defense Intelligence spokesperson Andrii Yusov said “the ultimate goal, of course, is the de-occupation of Ukrainian Crimea.”
An administrative building in the Russian city of Kursk was hit by a Ukrainian drone on Sunday, according to the region's governor Roman Starovoit.
"In Kursk, a Ukrainian drone attacked an administrative building in the Central district. The roof was slightly damaged. Employees of operational services rushed to the site," he said on Telegram.
