Ukraine’s Odesa Seaport Damaged In Overnight Russian Strike

Ukraine and Russia accused each other of deadly attacks on Sunday, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said a Russian strike damaged Odesa’s seaport and accused Moscow of putting global food security at risk.

Odesa’s seaports are a major route for Ukraine’s agricultural exports. Zelenskiy said Russia had also attacked nine other Ukrainian regions.

Local authorities said dozens of drones and missiles hit the southern Ukrainian port city, wounding about a dozen people. Zelenskiy said eight people were wounded in Odesa.

“In this way, the Russians are at war with the world’s food security,” Zelenskiy said.

Ukraine’s energy ministry said Russian attacks hit power facilities in the Odesa region, leaving a significant number of people in the port city without electricity overnight. Power was later restored to 90,000 consumers.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had struck fuel storage facilities in the ports of Odesa and nearby Chornomorsk. It said the facilities were being “used in the interests” of the Ukrainian military.

Black Sea shipping under attack

Russia and Ukraine have continued attacks on each other’s logistics and energy infrastructure.

Russia has been bombarding Odesa in an effort to cut Ukraine off from the Black Sea.

“Everyone who lives in Odesa knows that the most common target is around the port area,” said Ihor, a 67-year-old local resident whose apartment narrowly escaped destruction.

Ukraine has also been targeting Russian oil tankers and other cargo vessels in the Black Sea as it tries to disrupt Russian revenues used to wage the war. Ukraine claimed three more such strikes on Sunday.

I received reports from Sergii Koretskyi, Mykhailo Drapatyi, and Viktor Mykyta on the consequences of Russian strikes on Odesa, Kharkiv, Pavlohrad, and our other regions.

In Odesa and the region, repair work is ongoing to restore power supply to people after a brutal strike on… pic.twitter.com/DRhLIzdsjA

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 9, 2026

Energy and logistics facilities targeted

The conflict has also expanded to other logistics and energy facilities.

Both sides have carried out a wider campaign against each other’s logistics. E-commerce warehouses on both sides and Ukrainian petrol stations have come under heavy attack during the summer months.

Ukraine’s state oil and gas company Naftogaz said attacks on its facilities had increased significantly over the past three days. It said oil extraction facilities were also attacked overnight.

The Ukrainian energy ministry said the attacks on power facilities in the Odesa region caused a “significant amount” of the port city’s residents to lose electricity.

It later said power had been restored to 90,000 consumers.

Deadly attacks in Kharkiv and Belgorod

The attacks were also reported in other areas of Ukraine and Russia.

Three people were killed and 37 wounded in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv after a multi-storey apartment building was hit.

In Russia’s Belgorod region, authorities said five people were killed and 25 wounded in a Ukrainian drone attack.

Pope Leo calls for an end to war

In the Vatican, Pope Leo renewed his call on Sunday for an end to the 4-1/2-year war.

“Tragic incidents are multiplying, causing an ever-growing number of civilian victims, including children,” the pontiff said before worshippers gathered for Sunday’s Angelus prayer.

References: Reuters, CNBC TV18