In preparation for the war’s six-month mark on August 24, artillery shells rained down on a city near Europe’s largest nuclear reactor on Saturday night, while Russian missiles struck targets close to Odesa, a Ukrainian Black Sea port and a centre for grain exports.
The day will also celebrate the 31st anniversary of Ukraine’s independence from Soviet authority, and in a nightly video address, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged vigilance, warning that Moscow might try “something very unpleasant.”
Military and regional officials reported more Russian strikes on targets in the east as Ukraine got ready to celebrate its independence day while being torn apart by a conflict that has destroyed towns and cities, killed thousands, and driven millions of people from their homes.
The bombardment of Nikopol, a city across the Dnipro River from Zaporizhzhia, Europe’s largest nuclear reactor, was of particular concern. Since March, Russian military have controlled it.Overnight, Nikopol was shelled five times, according to regional governor Valentyn Reznichenko’s Telegram message.
According to him, 25 artillery munitions struck the city, starting a fire at an industrial building and knocking off the electricity for 3,000 people.Fears of a nuclear disaster have been sparked by fighting near Zaporizhzia and Saturday’s missile attack on the southern Ukrainian town of Voznesensk, which is close to Ukraine’s second-largest nuclear reactor.
