At least 7, including baby killed in Ukraine after Russian shelling; Moscow downed 4 drones

At least seven people, including a baby, were killed after Russian forces shelled two villages in the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson, on Sunday (August 13), according to officials in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russia claims to have shot down at least fourUkrainian drones over western regions.

At least seven including baby killed in Kherson

A couple, their 23-day-old daughter, and another man were killed in the village of Shyroka Balka, said Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. The couple’s previously critically wounded 12-year-old son later succumbed to his injuries in the hospital, he added.

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Two people were killed and one person was wounded in the neighbouring village of Stanislav, said Klymenko, adding that the area was struck 12 times with artillery. “The terrorists will never willingly stop killing civilians,” said the Ukrainian minister.

He added, “Terrorists must be stopped. They must be stopped by force. They don’t understand anything else.”

This comes after Ukraine had managed to reclaim the western part of the Kherson region from Russian occupation last November, however, Moscow’s forces have continued regularly shelling the region from across the Dnipro River.

Russian defencedowns fourUkrainian drones over Russia

Amid a spike in reported Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia, the country’s defence ministry said that they shot at least three more drones over two regions, on Sunday (August 13). According to the Russian defence ministry, threedrones were shot down over the Belgorod region and another over the Kursk region.

This also comes a day after Russia claimed to have shot 20 unmanned Ukrainian drones near the Crimean peninsula. Air defence systems were used to down 14 drones and six more using electronic warfare, said the defence ministry, on Saturday (August 12).

Ukraine is trying to pierce Russian lines in south: Russian-installed official

Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-installed official in parts of Zaporizhzhia controlled by Moscow, on Sunday (August 13) said that the Ukrainian forces are trying to pierce Russian lines in the western parts of the Donetsk region.

The Russian official also reported intense fighting south of Velyka Novosilka where Ukrainian troops are supposedly trying to pierce Russian lines to push down to the coast on the Sea of Azov.

“The enemy managed to enter and gain a foothold in the northern part of Urozhaine after two weeks of the heaviest and bloodiest battles for this settlement,” said Rogov.

However, he also said that the Russian forces still controlled the southern part of Urozhaine, adding that Ukrainian forces were clearly aiming to take control of a town further south, Staromlynivka, reported Reuters.

Ukraine launched its counteroffensive last month to retake territory captured by Russia in the south and east of the country. On Saturday, Ukrainian forces also said they had “partial success” near Robotyne on the front line in the southern Zaporizhzhia region.

Russian warship fires warning shots at cargo ship in Black Sea

The Russian defence ministry, on Sunday (August 13), said that it fired warning shots with automatic weapons on a Palau-flagged cargo ship in the Black Sea as it made its way to Ukraine.

According to Russian officials, its Vasily Bykov patrol ship had fired automatic weapons on the Sukru Okan vessel after it failed to respond to a halt for an inspection. The ship was said to be heading to the Ukrainian port of Izmail.

“To forcibly stop the vessel, warning fire was opened from automatic weapons,” said the Russian officials, adding that the military boarded the vessel with the help of a Ka-29 helicopter.

“After the inspection group completed its work on board, the Sukru Okan continued on its way to the port of Izmail,” said the Russian defence ministry. A report by Reuters citing Refinitiv shipping data said that the ship seemed to be headed north towards the coast of Bulgaria.

The incident also comes a month after Russia formally backed out of the United Nations-brokered grain deal and stopped Ukraine from exporting its grain via the Black Sea amid the ongoing war.

(With inputs from agencies)

Disclaimer: A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia war on the ground and online. While WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

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