Russia kills chief engineer at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in drone strike: attacks kill at least 12 across Ukraine
Russian authorities reported on Wednesday that the chief engineer at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Alexander Yakovlev, was killed by a Ukrainian drone strike. The strike hit Yakovlev’s official vehicle at the boundary between the plant’s industrial site and the city of Enerhodar, killing both Yakovlev and the driver.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest nuclear reactor, has been under Russian control since March 2022. Alexei Likhachev, the head of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom, confirmed the incident and called for a prompt response from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
In a separate development, at least 12 people were killed and 90 injured overnight in a major Russian airborne assault on targets across Ukraine. The southwestern city of Odessa was hardest hit, with three people killed and six injured after a missile hit a multi-story apartment block. The attack also damaged other civilian and industrial buildings and a gas pipeline.
The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed the attack on Odessa, stating it was targeting port infrastructure used for unloading petroleum, oil, and lubricants, as well as sites linked to military hardware manufacturing and cargo logistics.
Additionally, Russian forces launched a ballistic missile attack on Kyiv overnight. Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital during an air raid alert. Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that two people were killed and six others injured in the attack.
The attacks coincided with the arrival in Kyiv of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on her 11th visit for talks on ways for the defense industries of Europe and Ukraine to work together, as well as Kyiv’s accession to the European Union and help to get Ukraine through next winter.
Von der Leyen announced the launch of a new EU-Ukraine Defense Industrial Partnership to build more and faster defense capabilities.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces attacked other regions across the country with two cruise missiles and more than 120 drones, but air defenses managed to shoot down or disable more than four-fifths of the drones.
In the northeast, two people were killed and ten injured in 22 strikes across Kharkiv province, including Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. Three people were killed and 30 were injured in and around the city of Sumy due to a guided bomb attack.
Strikes on Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and Donetsk killed another four people and injured 44.
Ukraine hit back, claiming its drones struck 20 Russian ships in the Black Sea overnight.
The exchanges came as Russia's Engels-2 air base in Saratov Oblast was reportedly hit by Ukrainian drones overnight on July 16. Photos and videos posted to social media by local residents purport to show a fire burning in the area of the air base.
The Kyiv Independent cannot immediately verify the reports. Ukraine's military has not yet commented on the reported attack.
Located in the Saratov Oblast, nearly 600 kilometers from Ukraine's front line, Engels air base is home to the 184th Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment and 121st Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment. The base hosts strategic Russian bomber planes regularly used for aerial strikes, including the Tupolev Tu-95, the Tupolev Tu-22, and the Tupolev Tu-160.
The extent of damage caused, if any, was not immediately clear. Engels has been targeted a number of times since the launch of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the first of which occurred on Dec. 5, 2022, when a Ukrainian drone strike reportedly damaged two Tu-95s.
Before the latest attack, Engels air base was most recently targeted in June 2025.
The Security Service of Ukraine detained an enemy agent who was gathering coordinates for a new series of Russian missile and drone strikes on the Kyiv and Cherkasy regions.
The conflict continues as both sides exchange attacks and accusations. The international community watches closely as the situation develops.
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