Russian strikes leave one dead and 37 injured in the south and east of the country

New Russian strikes on Ukraine. Missile salvoes left one dead and three wounded in the southern region of Kherson and 34 wounded in the eastern one of Dnipropetrovsk, on the night of Sunday April 30 to Monday May 1, local authorities announced.

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“The Russian invaders attacked Ukraine with their strategic aviation” who fired “18 cruise missiles”, of which 15 were destroyed, said on Telegram the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, Valery Zalouzhny.

Reinforcement of anti-aircraft defenses

Over the winter, Ukraine beefed up its anti-aircraft defences, including with US Patriot systems, after appealing to its Western allies to help fend off bombardments on its energy grid.

Most of the fighting in Ukraine in recent weeks has focused on the eastern Donbass region, particularly the city of Bakhmout. The Russians have very gradually advanced in this largely destroyed industrial city, which they claim to control at around 80%.

The commander of the Ukrainian ground forces, Oleksandre Syrsky, for his part said on Monday that his men had carried out small counterattacks there. Russia “fails to take control [total] from the city”he said, stressing that the situation was still there “quite complicated”.