Ukrainian Military Chief Says Aide Killed In Explosion During Birthday Celebration

Ukraine on November 6 confirmed that its forces had inflicted “significant” damage to a Russian missile carrier in Kremlin-occupied Crimea two days earlier, identifying the vessel as the Askold and saying it might not be repairable.

“Confirmed. The Russian missile carrier Askold, the latest ship of the Karakurt class with stealth technology, was damaged as a result of the defeat by the armed forces of Ukraine of the sea and port infrastructure of the Zaliv plant in the temporarily occupied Crimea,” Ukraine’s military said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said his military had hit the Askold in the Kerch shipyard in Crimea, which Russia seized and illegally annexed in 2014 but which Kyiv seeks to retake.

“I thank everyone who ensured the successful destruction of the Russian ship at the Kerch shipyard,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.

Two days earlier, the Russian military said a Ukrainian missile strike on a shipyard in Crimea had damaged a Russian ship.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said 15 cruise missiles had been fired at the shipyard in eastern Crimea, adding that 13 had been shot down. It didn’t name the ship or detail the damage.

The Ukrainian military on November 4 also said it had carried out a “successful strike” on the Zaliv shipyard. It added that one of Russia’s “most modern” ships was at the shipyard but didn’t provide details at the time.

Earlier on November 6, Ukraine declared a large-scale air-raid alert, instructing citizens to take shelter amid indications of a possible fresh wave of Russian strikes.

The alert in midafternoon came after Russia earlier in the day struck Odesa, Ukraine’s main Black Sea port, with missiles and drones, wounding at least eight people and causing extensive damage to a renowned art museum and residential buildings in the city’s historic center, while drone debris set grain warehouses on fire.

Regional Governor Oleh Kiper put the final number of wounded people at eight after initially saying five residents had been injured in the attack.

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Kiper wrote on Telegram that missiles targeted the city center and a disused industrial building.

Natalya Humenyuk, a spokeswoman for the southern military command, said Russia attacked the southern regions with various types of missiles and attack drones early on November 6.

Humenyuk said the city of Odesa was attacked with Iskander-M and Onyx missiles as well as Iranian-made Shahed drones. Both Humenyuk and Kiper said 15 drones were shot down by air defenses.

The Odesa National Art Museum, located in the city’s UNESCO world heritage area close to the port, was also damaged by a Russian missile on the day it was celebrating 124 years of existence.

“On November 6, the Odesa National Art Museum turned 124 years old. The Russians “congratulated” our architectural monument with a missile that hit nearby. The walls of the building are damaged, some windows and glass are broken,” Kiper wrote on Telegram.

Separately, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said that 20 apartment buildings were damaged in Odesa.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s 128th Separate Mountain Assault Transcarpathian Brigade announced that the final number of its soldiers killed last week in a Russian air strike was 19, but offered no further details.

Ukrainian officials have not yet released full details of the incident, but the Ukrayinska Pravda news portal said the soldiers were taking part in a ceremony in the Zaporizhzhya region on November 3 as part of Artillery Day activities when Russian shells hit the area.

The report quoted Viktor Mykyta, head of the Zakarpattya administration, as saying that November 6 was declared a day of mourning throughout the soldiers’ home region.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said on November 4 that an investigation had been launched into the attack, which President Volodymyr Zelenskiy described as “a tragedy that could have been avoided.”

On the battlefield, Ukrainian forces fought 53 close-quarter battles over the past 24 hours along the front line, the General Staff of Ukraine’s military said in its daily report early on November 6.

Fierce fighting was under way around the industrial city of Avdiyivka, in the eastern region of Donetsk, which Russian troops have been attempting to capture for the past several weeks in one of the most intense battles of the war.

Ukrainian troops repelled 10 assaults in the Avdiyivka area, the military said, despite the Russians using air support.

Fighting also picked up in the southern region of Zaporizhzhya, where Russian forces have been attempting to recapture Robotyne, a village liberated by Ukrainian troops in August.

In a U.S. TV interview on November 5, Zelenskiy called on Washington to provide further aid to help his country battle against the Russian invasion.

“If Russia will kill all of us, they will attack NATO countries and you will send your sons and daughters [to fight],” Zelenskiy told NBC.

Zelenskiy also invited former President Donald Trump to travel to Ukraine to see the nature of the conflict for himself and that “I will need 24 minutes, no more” to explain to him that he can’t manage this war because of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump, the leading Republican candidate to face Democratic President Joe Biden in the 2024 election, has said he could end the war in “24 hours” and has expressed doubts about the need to continue aid to Ukraine.