In a painful reminder that diplomacy remains elusive, Ukraine and Russia exchanged fresh attacks along the Black Sea coast on Thursday, just hours after yet another round of peace talks failed to deliver any progress. The people caught in the crossfire, however, continue to carry the scars — and the weight — of a war now stretching into its fourth year.
In Ukraine’s historic port city of Odesa, Russian drones tore through the night sky, leaving fires and shattered memories in their wake. At least four people were injured, and damage was reported in the city’s UNESCO-protected centre. Among the places hit was the beloved Pryvoz Market, a vibrant hub for locals. “It is not just a place of trade, it is the living heart of Odesa,” said Regional Governor Oleh Kiper.
By morning, the streets were littered with shards of glass, but also filled with resilience. Twenty-year-old Yevhen, a student, swept the broken fragments off the pavement. “So what if the drones are flying? We will shoot them down; they will not break us,” he said, defiant in the face of destruction.
On the other side of the conflict, in Russia’s Krasnodar region, tragedy struck the Adler district near Sochi when drone debris killed a woman. Another woman was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries. The Sirius federal district reported that a drone had also hit an oil facility, while Sochi Airport was temporarily closed, disrupting civilian life yet again.
Back in Ukraine, the Cherkasy region saw overnight missile strikes that injured seven, including a 9-year-old child. More than a dozen apartment buildings were left damaged — homes that once symbolized safety now stand broken.
Just hours before these attacks, negotiators met in Istanbul to discuss prisoner swaps and potential ceasefire measures. But the conversation was fleeting, and the divide between the two sides remained deep. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy lamented on Telegram, “Yesterday, at a meeting in Istanbul, the Russian side was again presented with a proposal to immediately and completely cease fire. In response, Russian drones are striking residential buildings.”
Zelenskyy said Russia had launched 103 drones and four missiles overnight, targeting critical civilian infrastructure: seaports, transport hubs, and neighborhoods where families slept unaware of what was coming.
Russia, too, has faced increasing strikes deep within its borders, as Ukraine retaliates by hitting energy and military targets. As both nations ramp up drone warfare, the battle is no longer confined to the frontlines — the heartlands are bleeding too.
With peace talks yielding no tangible results and civilians suffering on both sides, the question remains: how much longer can the people — not the politicians — endure this endless war?