(Kyiv) Ukraine announced the death of two rescuers on Saturday in a two-stage Russian bombing in the southeastern region of Zaporizhia, a rare example of this technique sometimes used in conflicts.
In Komychouvaka, “the first two shots injured four residents of the region and a residential building caught fire,” Ukrainian police said in a statement.
“When police and rescuers arrived at the scene, the military of the terrorist country fired again,” according to the police account. “Two state emergency service workers were killed and three other colleagues were injured to varying degrees.”
“Double taps”, these two-stage bombings a few minutes apart which target relief efforts, are relatively rare in Ukraine despite the intensity of the fighting between Russians and Ukrainians which has lasted for almost two years.
Earlier on Saturday, Ukraine reported an increase in nighttime drone attacks launched by Russia, accusing it of having fired 38 on its territory, the highest number since September 30.
The Ukrainian Air Force said it shot down 29 of the 38 Iranian-made Shahed drones, explosive drones.
An energy installation was hit in the Odessa region, in the south of the country, Ukrainian emergency services also indicated.
PHOTO EMERGENCY SERVICES OF THE ODESSA REGION VIA REUTERS
Two firefighters at the site of a fire in the southern Odessa region on November 18
Furthermore, the Ukrainian general staff declared on Saturday that its forces “continue to hold positions on the left bank [orientale] of the Dnieper River.
For more than a year, Ukrainian and Russian forces have been entrenched on either side of the vast river in the southern region of Kherson, after Russia withdrew its troops from the western bank last November .
Ukrainian forces have repeatedly attempted to cross and hold their positions on the Russian-controlled side, with Kyiv officials finally reporting a “successful” operation last week on the left bank.
“Our defenders are consolidating their positions and firing on the occupiers,” the General Staff said of its operations on the eastern bank of the river.
For its part, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had destroyed seven Ukrainian naval drones in the Black Sea and 20 others flying in the skies of occupied territories in eastern and southern Ukraine.