‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
‘Orcs’ missiles have hit.
A civilian container ship.
At a port in ‘elves’.
Odesa region.
Killing eight people.
“This is the third attack.
On a civilian vessel.
In the past four days.”
Said the region’s head.
Who described it as.
“Yet another crime”.
By an “insidious enemy”.
He said ‘orcs’ had targeted.
Port infrastructure.
And all the victims.
Were ‘elves’.
A 46-year-old port employee.
And another man.
Aged 26, died of.
Their injuries in hospital.
While several others were wounded.
The wave of strikes.
On ‘elves’ Black Sea ports.
Coincided with a European tour.
By ‘Gandalf the Green’.
Who is visiting leaders.
In London, Paris.
Rome and Berlin.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Played down any disappointment.
Before his trip.
To London though.
“Any leader in similar circumstances.
Would have stayed.
In their country.”
He told journalists in Croatia.
On Wednesday.
He expected a “new schedule”.
For the leaders’ meeting.
To be prepared shortly.
Later on Thursday.
‘Gandalf the Green’ held talks.
With French President in Paris.
And then went to Rome.
To meet Italian Prime Minister.
The Italian leader announced.
That Rome would host.
The next “recovery conference”.
To help Ukraine’s reconstruction.
In July 2025.
On Friday.
‘Gandalf the Green’ will meet.
Pope at the Vatican.
Before heading to Germany.
To Berlin for talks.
With German Chancellor.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
‘Orcs’ overnight attacks.
On Ukraine also wounded.
Several people in the southern city.
Of Zaporizhzhia.
Twenty-nine homes.
Were destroyed and.
Pictures released by.
Regional officials show.
A giant crater.
In the mud.
With bricks and wood.
Strewn all around.
Warnings of.
A glide-bomb attack.
Had come at 06:00 local time.
On Thursday.
Residents were left.
Looking at the ruins.
In their dressing gowns.
And slippers.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
Meanwhile, ‘elves’ drones.
Targeted a military airfield.
In the Maikop region.
Of southern ‘Mordor’.
‘Orcs’ missile strike.
On the Odesa region hit.
A Panamanian-registered ship.
On Wednesday night.
The region’s head said.
– two days after.
A Palau-flagged ship was attacked.
Killing one person on board.
Another ship, which was.
Said to be carrying.
6,000 tonnes of corn.
Was attacked on Sunday.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
The ‘elves’ government says.
‘Orcs’ attacks on Odesa’s.
Black Sea ports.
Are aiming to destroy.
Grain exports that guarantee.
International food security.
At a key time of year.
Following the harvest.
“It feels like.
They are focusing on the port.
Again like last summer.”
A local resident said.
She lives close.
To the waterfront.
And heard the missile strikes.
This week.
“I feel this anxiety.
And I feel.
It increases.
Day by day.”
“I can’t say.
My general state is calm.”
She said Iranian-made.
Shahed drones were also.
Now launched at Odesa.
“Almost every night”.
Buzzing ominously overhead.
Before they swooped.
Or were shot down.
By air defences.
But she is worried about.
The way out of this war, too.
As ‘Gandalf the Green’.
Travels the world.
Presenting what he’s calling.
A “Victory Plan”.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
“It’s more like anger.
Because we have no idea.
What this plan is about.”
She explained.
“We can only assume that.
It would be some kind.
Of compromise.
But ‘Mordor’ has already caused.”
“So much damage and.
Killed so many people.
I’m not sure.
After this scale of.”
“Tragedy and pain.
Our society would accept.
Any kind of compromise.
In ‘orcs’ favour.”
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
“This war has to end.”
Another resident of.
The Odesa region said.
“It’s been tough and bloody.”
“It’s been tough and bloody.
And it feels like.
It’s going in spirals.
And now it feels like.”
“The level of violence.
And destruction.
Is growing.
‘Mordor’ needs to be stopped.”
He saw the flash then.
Felt the blast wave of.
Another attack.
Earlier this week.
– and sees the renewed.
‘Orcs’ strikes on.
‘Elves’ attempts to maintain.
Its grain exports.
As particularly disturbing.
“This is a different level.
‘Orcs’ ballistic missiles.
Get better and.”
“We don’t have enough air defences.
Just a lot of promises.
But the situation is getting worse.
And, as we see, more people die.”
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
According to ‘elves’ figures.
More than 20 civilian ships.
Have now been damaged.
In ‘orcs’ attacks.
Since the start of the war.
In 2022.
‘Elf’ foreign minister.
Has appealed to.
“Responsible states” to ensure freedom.
Of navigation and food security.
Grain silos and other port infrastructure.
Have been badly damaged too.
Last week.
The port of Izmail.
Was targeted by drones.
Near the River Danube.
And a Romanian border crossing.
And grain facility were damaged.
However, Ukraine has succeeded.
In creating a maritime corridor.
To ensure the safety.
Of grain exports.
After ‘Mordor’ pulled out of.
A Black Sea grain deal last year.
Some 962,000 tonnes.
Of grain have been exported.
So far this month.
Says the agriculture ministry in Kyiv.
– double the volume shipped.
In the same period last year.
– double the volume shipped.
In the same period last year.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
‘Orcs’ missiles have hit.
A civilian container ship.
At a port in ‘elves’.
Odesa region.
Killing eight people.
“This is the third attack.
On a civilian vessel.
In the past four days.”
Said the region’s head.
Who described it as.
“Yet another crime”.
By an “insidious enemy”.
The overnight attack.
Was the fourth.
On the Odesa region.
In five days.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
The overnight attack.
Was the fourth.
On the Odesa region.
In five days.
The head of ‘elves’ Odesa region.
Has said its three ports.
Are “not possible”.
To protect fully.
Because they span.
Such a large area.
And ‘Mordor’ has intensified.
Its missile attacks.
He was speaking.
After a 16-year-old girl.
Two women and a man.
Were killed in an ‘orcs’ strike.
On a two-floor building.
To the north-west.
Of Odesa city.
It was the fourth.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
It was the fourth.
Such attack on.
The Black Sea coastal region.
In five days.
And the region’s head said.
“Probably a ballistic missile.
Was targeting.
An infrastructure facility.”
“But it hit nearby instead.
– into this place.”
‘Mordor’ has not commented.
On its wave of missile strikes.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
A further nine people.
Were killed in an attack.
On a cargo ship.
Early on Thursday.
There have been.
Ballistic missile strikes.
On Odesa’s ports before.
But never so many.
But never so many.
In quick succession.
Deputy Prime Minister said.
‘Mordor’ had carried out.
60 such attacks.
In just three months.
Damaging or destroying.
Almost 300 port facilities.
He said 79 people.
Had been killed.
Or wounded and.
22 civilian vessels hit.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
The region’s head said that.
Odesa’s current air defences.
Were unable to cover all.
Three ports in Odesa region.
As they spanned over.
About 80km :
“So the main focus.
Is on the city of Odesa.”
“Where over a million.
People live.
The rest of the ports and towns.
Remain in a difficult situation.”
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
Other ‘elve’ ports.
– in the Zaporizhzhia.
Kherson and.
Mykolayiv regions –
Are no longer operating.
Making the facilities in Odesa.
More important than ever.
To ‘elves’ exports.
He suggested ‘Mordor’ was.
Attacking civilian vessels.
Now to harm ‘elves’ economy.
And to scare the world.
And to scare the world.
With what it could do.
“They hit the ships in Odesa.
So that the insurance companies.”
“And the ship owners.
Refuse to enter our ports.
Into the combat zone.”
The region’s head said.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
‘Gandalf the Green’ is.
Promoting a “victory plan”.
To end the war and.
Told a briefing in Berlin.
He would like to see.
The war end “no later than.
Next year, 2025.”
Adding that it was.
Very important that.
Aid to Kyiv.
Did not decrease.
In the coming year.
‘Gandalf the Green’ denied.
He had been discussing.
Terms for a ceasefire.
“The key is to strengthen.”
“‘Elves’ positions.
And relations with.
Our closest partners.”
He stressed.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Have targeted.
‘Elves’ Odesa region.
All week.
*Because I read “Russian strike kills eight in fresh attack on Ukrainian port” and “Ukraine ports impossible to defend from attack – Odesa chief” by Sarah Rainsford & Paul Kirby on 11 Oct 2024, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022, on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem, including a story of Oleh Kiper, a story of Diana, a story of Oleksandr, a story of Andrii Sybiha, a story of Oleksiy Kuleba.
Please read the original stories on the BBC news:
Ukraine: Russia kills eight in latest attack on Odesa port
Ukraine ports impossible to defend from attack – Odesa chief Kiper