Europe 1 with AFP 15:13 p.m., June 10, 2023, modified at 15:13 p.m., June 10, 2023

On the 471st day of the Russian invasion, three people were killed and 26 others injured in the Odessa region after a fire caused by falling drone debris, destroyed by Ukrainian air defense. On the other hand, Russia has promised a response after Iceland closed its embassy in Moscow.

Three people were killed and 26 injured early Saturday in Ukraine's southern Odessa region in a fire caused by falling debris from drones destroyed by Ukrainian air defenses, according to regional authorities.

"During the night, the (Russian) enemy attacked in the Odessa region with drones," said a statement from the authorities posted on social media. All the machines were destroyed but debris fell on an apartment building, causing a fire and damage to several buildings. "Unfortunately, there are casualties among the civilian population," the Ukrainian authorities added. Among the injured were three children, the sources said.

Information to remember:

  • Three people were killed and 26 others injured in the Odessa region.
  • Russia has vowed to retaliate after Iceland's decision to close its embassy in Moscow.

Russia vows response after Iceland closes embassy in Moscow

Russia vowed to retaliate on Saturday after Iceland's decision a day earlier to close its embassy in Moscow due to the conflict in Ukraine, becoming the first country to take such a step. "All anti-Russian actions by Reykjavik will inevitably elicit a response," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, accusing Iceland of having "ruined" relations between the two countries. "We will take this unfriendly decision into account when we establish our relations with Iceland in the future," he added, believing that "the entire responsibility for this development rests" with Reykjavik.

The small Nordic country is the first to take such a step since the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine. Icelandic Foreign Minister Thórdís Gylfadóttir said on Friday that "the current situation simply does not allow the small diplomatic representation in (Reykjavik) to operate in Russia." In the Russian capital, the flag of the Icelandic embassy was symbolically removed from the performance Friday afternoon, an AFP team found.

Iceland also asked Moscow to "limit the activities" of its embassy in the Icelandic capital and to "reduce the level of representation". Reykjavik made it clear that this is not a break in diplomatic relations. The Nordic country of 375,000 had an embassy in Moscow since 1944, except during the period 1951-53. It had been a symbolic East-West meeting place at the end of the Cold War.