Anger grows over Russian strikes on beloved historic sites in Odesa

Believers pray outside the Transfiguration Cathedral, damaged during missile strikes on Odesa. Pic/AP

In only a week, Russia has fired dozens of missiles and drones at the Odesa region. None struck quite as deeply as the one that destroyed the cathedral, which stands at the heart of the city's romantic, notorious past and its deep roots in both Ukrainian and Russian culture.

Tetiana Khlapova's hand trembled as she recorded the wreckage of Odesa's devastated Transfiguration Cathedral on her cellphone and cursed Russia, her native land. Khlapova was raised in Ukraine and had always dreamed of living in the seaside city. But not as the war refugee that she has become. "I am a refugee from Kharkiv. I endured that hell and came to sunny Odesa, the pearl, the heart of our Ukraine," said Khlapova, who has lived in the country for 40 of her 50 years.

Her neck still has a shrapnel scar from the third day of the war, when her apartment was hit. On Day 4, she fled to Odesa. "At any moment, you can just be hit and your whole body will be torn apart," she said. Odesa's regional infrastructure was hit repeatedly by Russia over the winter, unlike its port, which was key to the Black Sea Grain Initiative that allowed agricultural products to be shipped safely from both countries to feed people around the world.

The region's silos were full when Russia pulled out of the agreement in mid-July. Missiles and drones struck the next day, taking aim at storage sites, transportation infrastructure and random buildings. Ukraine's air defenses deflected most of the hits, but every day a handful made it through. Last week's attacks marked the first time Odesa's historic city center was hit since the war started.

EU discusses grain exports

European Union agriculture ministers met on Tuesday to discuss ways of moving grain vital to global food security out of Ukraine after Russia halted a deal that allowed the exports. At the same time, they want to protect prices for farmers in countries bordering Ukraine.

Landmines placed around nuke plant

The power plant after the dam collapse. Pic/AP

The UN atomic watchdog says its staff at Ukraine's Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant report seeing anti-personnel mines around the site as Kyiv pursues a counteroffensive against the Kremlin's entrenched forces after 17 months of war. "Having such explosives on the site is inconsistent with the IAEA safety standards and nuclear security guidance and creates additional psychological pressure on plant staff," the statement said.

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