19 Ukrainian troops killed at event

A crater outside the art museum following a Russian airstrike. Pic/AP

Ukraine said on Monday that 19 service members were killed by a Russian missile strike in Zaporizhzhia during a military awards ceremony in what President Volodymyr Zelensky said was a "tragedy that could've been avoided." Defence Minister Rustem Umerov ordered an investigation into why the 128th Separate Mountain-Assault Brigade of Zakarpattia participated in the crowded event honoring troops close to front lines.

The announcement came as officials said Russian drone and missile strikes in Odesa wounded eight people and damaged an art museum that is part of a UNESCO World Heritage site, and satellite photos showed damage done by a Ukrainian missile strike to a Russian naval ship.

Odesa's National Art Museum said seven exhibitions, most featuring the work of contemporary Ukrainian artists, were damaged by a strike that left a large crater outside the museum celebrating its 124th anniversary. The attack followed reports by Russia that Ukrainian cruise missiles had struck one of its vessels in the Crimean Peninsula.

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