Deadly Russian mass missile, drone strike on Odesa :1 dead, at least 10 injured

Late on November 14, Russia launched a massive aerial assault on Odesa, striking residential areas with drones and missiles. The attack claimed the life of one woman and injured at least ten others, including a 9-year-old boy and a 22-year-old man who sustained serious injuries. The other victims are being treated for moderate injuries, Governor Oleh Kiper reported.

The attack destroyed an apartment building in Odesa's city center and caused fires and damage to other residential buildings. A church, educational institutions, and vehicles were also struck. Critically, the assault damaged one of the city’s main heating pipelines, leading to the shutdown of a boiler house that supplies heat to 220 apartment buildings, seven kindergartens, four schools, and a maternity hospital. Emergency repairs are underway, and the hospital is relying on a generator to maintain heat for 22 newborns and 28 women in labor.

Emergency response teams are actively working at the impacted sites, and efforts to restore heating are ongoing. Andriy Yermak, head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office, condemned the attack as a "terrorist act," stating, “Putin just likes to fight civilians.”

This latest strike is part of a pattern of intensified Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, including consecutive strikes on Odesa on November 8 and 9, which also resulted in civilian casualties. Officials warn that these attacks, targeting critical infrastructure, threaten Ukraine's energy and heating systems as winter approaches. This could mark one of the harshest winters since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, according to Ukraine’s energy authorities.

Russia threatens to expel UN monitors from Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

On November 14, Russia's Foreign Ministry warned it could expel International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors from the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) if their work is deemed "inappropriate."

The statement followed remarks by IAEA Director Rafael Grossi, who said the agency's monitors would remain at the plant until the conflict reaches a less intense phase, potentially a ceasefire or "frozen conflict."

Russia emphasized that the inspectors are present at ZNPP only with its government’s consent and can remain "as long as our country considers their stay there to be justified." The ministry criticized Grossi for discussing a potential reduction in hostilities, arguing it was outside the IAEA's mandate.

Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, the largest in Europe, has been under Russian control since March 2022. Although IAEA teams have been stationed there since September 2022, Russia continues to deny inspectors full access to the facility. The plant’s proximity to the front lines has significantly heightened nuclear safety concerns amid the ongoing war.

Russians damaged an ancient church in Sumy Oblast

The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a national monument and a cornerstone of Sumy Oblast’s architectural heritage, has been damaged in the village of Yunakivka.

Photos shared by Volodymyr Bykov, Sumy Oblast’s chief architect, reveal significant destruction. The wooden scaffolding around the church has burned down, one of the domes is broken, and the bell tower, along with parts of nearby towers, has crumbled.

Constructed in 1806, the Church of the Nativity exemplifies early classicist architecture. Built of brick and adorned with columns, the structure features a central dome surrounded by four smaller domes with round windows, and a separate bell tower. Despite its historical significance, the church, under the Sumy Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), had fallen into a semi-derelict state from the 2000s to the 2010s.

The church holds a special place in the region's identity. It once served as the spiritual center of Yunakivka and is depicted on the coat of arms of the Sumy district, approved in 2001. The church's image on a blue background pays homage to the color of Cossack flags, underscoring its cultural and historical importance.

Efforts to preserve and restore this architectural treasure have now become an urgent priority.