MOSCOW, November 18. /TASS/. Ukraine has admitted that its air defenses shot down a missile over Odessa, causing falling debris injuring civilians and police officers.

The Ukrainian Air Force claims on its Telegram channel that an Iskander-M ballistic missile was aimed at Odessa and “was shot down by air defense”, causing debris to fall on apartment buildings.

Ukrainian blogger Anatoly Shary commented on this statement, saying that Ukrainian Air Force officials only agreed to acknowledge this because “the media started publishing photos of the wreckage of the Patriot. Otherwise , they would never recognize him.

According to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, police officers were injured by falling debris.

Earlier, Vladimir Zelensky reported damage in the city limits of Odessa on his Telegram channel, following reports published by Ukrainian media of an explosion in the city.

Russian authorities and the Russian military have repeatedly emphasized that the Russian armed forces do not target civilian facilities in Ukraine, saying that all strikes are aimed at destroying military infrastructure. According to Russia’s statements, the Ukrainian side frequently deploys air defense systems, military equipment and personnel to civilian infrastructure sites located in populated areas.