Aug. 20 (UPI) — A Russian missile strike in Mykolaiv hit a residential building Saturday morning, injuring numerous children while new explosions were reported at Russian Black Sea fleet headquarters in Crimea, marking the latest battlefield activity in Ukraine.
The projectile hit a five-story building in Voskresenske in the Mykolaiv region, where four children and five adults were seriously injured. One girl lost an eye because of shrapnel, said Vitaliy Kim, head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration.
Ukrainian officials have repeatedly accused Russia of targeting non-military targets, leaving scores of civilians dead. Russia has almost always rebutted such reports, saying it attacks only military areas.
Russian-occupied Crimea, forcibly annexed by Moscow in 2014, has become an increasing target of attacks. On Saturday, Sevastopol Gov. Mikhail Razvozhayev said a drone flew onto the roof of the Russia Black Sea Fleet headquarters before being shot down. Razvozhayev said no one was hurt. Ukraine had not accepted responsibility for the attack.
The British Defense Ministry said there were few territorial control changes over the past week with Russia showing small advances in the Donbas. Moscow has failed to break through Ukrainian defense lines along the outskirts of Bakhmut over the past week.
“Russia has not made any major efforts to advance in the Zaporizhzhia or Kharkiv sectors,” the ministry said on Twitter. “In the southwest, neither Ukrainian nor Russian forces have made advances on the Kherson front line. However, increasingly frequent explosions behind Russian lines are probably stressing Russian logistics and air basing in the south.”
The ministry said the situation is not likely to change over the next week as Russia appears to be preparing for limited local assaults with a smaller company of troops.
“However, over the coming months the initiative will go to whichever side manages to generate a credible, committed force for offensive operations,” the ministry said.
