Governor: Russian missile attack on Odesa kills 4, including 10-year-old girl

Illustrative photo: Odesa on the Black Sea in the early morning on Feb. 24, 2024. (Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Editor's note: The initial version of the article said the attack killed four people and wounded another seven. The number of injured people was changed to 14 when the regional governor published an update.

Russian forces struck the Odesa area on the evening of April 10, killing four people, including a 10-year-old girl, and wounding another 14, according to the latest update by Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper.

Ukraine’s southern regions, such as Odesa, are frequent targets of Russian attacks. A March 29 Russian missile strike on Odesa injured at least five people, including three children, according to local officials.

Russia attacked Odesa Oblast with Iskander-M ballistic missiles from 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. local time, Kipersaid without specifying how many missiles hit the region.

Those injured reportedly included a man in severe condition whose lower limbs were amputated, and a four-year-old girl.

Transport infrastructure and trucks were damaged in the attack, according to Kiper.

According to the Southern Defense Forces, it was a double-tap attack, in which there is an initial strike followed by a second - with a delay - so that it can potentially wound or kill first responders. A gas station was among the struck facilities, “which increases the explosive danger,” the military added.

Russia has recently intensified its use of double-tap attacks on Ukrainian cities, leading to multiple casualties among civilians.

Multiple explosions were reported in Odesa on April 10, with transport infrastructure hit twice in the morning, injuring two employees, the Southern Defense Forces said.

Russia’s intensified attacks against Odesa coincided with the 80th anniversary of the city’s liberation from the Nazi occupation during WWII.

Read also: 5 children killed in single attack: ‘We should never forget what Russia did’