Antigua-flagged Vessel Damaged in Russian Attack

A Russian missile strike has damaged infrastructure and an Antigua-flagged civilian vessel in the Ukrainian port of Odesa, the regional governor said on Friday.

Four people were wounded in the airstrike, Governor Oleh Kiper said on the Telegram messaging app.

"Debris from, according to preliminary assessment, an Iskander-M missile, damaged port and civilian infrastructure, as well as a civilian ship flying the flag of Antigua," Kiper said.

The Iskander-M is a ballistic missile which flies at several times the speed of sound and has a stated range of up to 500 km (310 miles).

A market source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters the vessel was carrying metal products.

Ship-tracking website Marinetraffic showed there was an Antigua-flagged cargo vessel named Golden Lion moored in the Port of Odesa.

Russia has struck the port repeatedly in the war since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Ukraine accused Moscow of hitting a civilian grain vessel travelling from Odesa to Egypt near Romanian waters with a cruise missile last week.

(Reuters - Reporting by Max Hunder and Pavel Polityuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage)