02:56Footage captured in Odessa on Saturday shows crews clearing away the rubble of a heavily damaged building in the aftermath of an alleged drone strike.
In a post on Telegram, Ihor Klymenko, Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs reported that 'seven people' had died after an overnight strike on a 'high-rise building.
"The search and rescue operation did not stop for a minute and will continue until we are sure that there is no one else under the rubble," the statement added.
Odessa regional governor Oleh Kiper later reported that an eighth body was 'taken from under the rubble' while eight others were injured in the shelling.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the strike, describing it as 'terrorism' aimed at 'destroying lives'.
"A rescue operation lasted all day in Odessa at the site of the Russian strike by a Shahed drone. Currently, the State Emergency Service, police, and other services continue to work – there is information about people under the rubble," he wrote in a post on Telegram.
Russia has not commented on the reported drone attack. It has strongly denied targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
Aftermath of reported drone attack in Odessa as Ukraine claims eight killed
Footage captured in Odessa on Saturday shows crews clearing away the rubble of a heavily damaged building in the aftermath of an alleged drone strike.
In a post on Telegram, Ihor Klymenko, Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs reported that 'seven people' had died after an overnight strike on a 'high-rise building.
"The search and rescue operation did not stop for a minute and will continue until we are sure that there is no one else under the rubble," the statement added.
Odessa regional governor Oleh Kiper later reported that an eighth body was 'taken from under the rubble' while eight others were injured in the shelling.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the strike, describing it as 'terrorism' aimed at 'destroying lives'.
"A rescue operation lasted all day in Odessa at the site of the Russian strike by a Shahed drone. Currently, the State Emergency Service, police, and other services continue to work – there is information about people under the rubble," he wrote in a post on Telegram.
Russia has not commented on the reported drone attack. It has strongly denied targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
Footage captured in Odessa on Saturday shows crews clearing away the rubble of a heavily damaged building in the aftermath of an alleged drone strike.
In a post on Telegram, Ihor Klymenko, Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs reported that 'seven people' had died after an overnight strike on a 'high-rise building.
"The search and rescue operation did not stop for a minute and will continue until we are sure that there is no one else under the rubble," the statement added.
Odessa regional governor Oleh Kiper later reported that an eighth body was 'taken from under the rubble' while eight others were injured in the shelling.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the strike, describing it as 'terrorism' aimed at 'destroying lives'.
"A rescue operation lasted all day in Odessa at the site of the Russian strike by a Shahed drone. Currently, the State Emergency Service, police, and other services continue to work – there is information about people under the rubble," he wrote in a post on Telegram.
Russia has not commented on the reported drone attack. It has strongly denied targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.