Russia has killed at least three people in new drone attacks on the Ukrainian Black Sea city of Odessa, according to local authorities.

During the night-time attack, a drone crashed into the building of a company in the coastal zone, the military administration announced on Friday morning.

A fire also broke out as a result. Emergency services initially pulled one dead body from the rubble and then two more, it said.

Destruction was also reported in the city of Dnipro following a drone attack. The authorities there published images of a damaged tower block where they said eight people were injured. A search was underway for people buried under the rubble.

This Saturday marks the second anniversary of the start of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who ordered the invasion on February 24, 2022, congratulated Russian soldiers Friday night, on Defender of the Fatherland Day, one of Russia’s most important national holidays.

The Kremlin’s forces have relentlessly bombarded Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles.

According to the Ukrainian air defence, a total of 23 out of 31 Russian drone attacks were shot down in the early hours of Friday, nine of them in Odessa.

The leadership in Kiev has again called for more support from the West to expand its air defence system in order to better protect the country’s cities from attacks by rockets, cruise missiles and drones and thus save more lives.