At least 16 killed, 72 injured in Ukraine's Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson regions

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - At least 16 people have been killed and 72 injured by strikes in Ukraine's regions of Donetsk, Kharkiv, and Kherson, authorities said on Sunday.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, used Telegram to announce the casualties that occurred Saturday, citing regional military administrations.

Tymoshenko noted that all the deaths were in Kherson, though the numbers of casualties differed among sources.

Kherson Governor Yaroslav Yanushevych confirmed on Telegram that 16 people were killed in the region, three of which were employees of Ukraine's State Emergency Service, who died during de-mining efforts in the Berislav district.

Yanushevych added that another 64 people were injured in the entire region.

Separately, Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synehubov said a 72-year-old man had died as a result of daytime artillery shelling in the village of Podola in the Kupiansk district. "His 74-year-old wife was injured and hospitalized. The condition of the victim is average," he said.

Donetsk Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said five of seven civilians injured in his region on Saturday were from Bakhmut, while one person each was injured in Maksimilianivka and Predtechyn.

On Saturday, Russia and Ukraine accused each other of shelling the city center of Kherson, with initial reports from Tymoshenko saying five people were killed and 35 others injured, while the Russian media claimed seven people were killed and 53 injured.

Since the beginning of November, Kherson has been under the control of the armed forces of Ukraine.

As of last Monday, civilian casualties in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war reached 17,595, including 6,826 deaths and 10,769 injuries, according to UN figures.​​​​​​