A prominent Ukrainian businessman died alongside his wife amid heavy Russian shelling overnight in the southern city of Mykolaiv. Oleksiy Vadatursky, 74, was a towering presence in the Ukrainian grain business and ranked the country’s 24th richest man; he had also won a “Hero of Ukraine” award, an honor conferred by the nation’s president. As the Daily Mail reported, Ukrainian officials said that Sunday’s shelling was the “strongest” on the city to date, damaging two schools, a sports complex, a hotel, and various homes. An adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he suspected the attack, which hit Vadatursky’s bedroom, was targeted. Vadatursky’s death comes amid a food crisis, with a huge amount of grain trapped at Ukrainian ports. A UN-brokered deal between Russia and Ukraine to re-open some of those ports was nearly derailed earlier this month, but the first shipment is expected to go out tomorrow.
