Zelensky condemns Russian attack on civilians

Nine people were injured during Russian attacks on the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv overnight, the local authorities reported on Friday.

"Amongst the injured are women in a maternity ward," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram, adding that no children were injured in the attack. Zelensky accused the Russian military of deliberately targeting civilians.

He wrote that there were also attacks on the areas of Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy and, in the morning, in the Odessa region.

Zelensky warned that Russia would continue to attack with bombs, missiles and drones, and the strengthening of air defences was therefore a top priority.

Both sides in the war are bombarding each other every night and every day. Just the day before, the United Nations published a report stating that the number of civilians killed in Russia's bombardment of Ukraine in June was the highest in three years.

In its defensive battle, Ukraine is firing on targets far behind the Russian border. The Russian Defence Ministry reported on Friday that 155 Ukrainian drones had been shot down.

Dmitry Milyaev, governor of the Tula region south of Moscow, said on Friday that one person had been killed and another injured in drone attacks.

The independent online news site Astra reported that the attacks were directed against a district where three arms factories are located. Tula is known for its weapons factories.

Local media reported that a drone factory in the town of Dubna, near Moscow, was also attacked. No information about the damage was initially available.