 |
| Aerorozvidka R18 |
NEWSLINE PAPER,- The Defence Ministry in Moscow said on Saturday that Ukraine has started a string of drone attacks throughout Russia over night. The strikes, which appeared to target Russia's energy infrastructure, signalled a worrisome intensification in the current hostilities.
Fifty drones were reportedly detected by Russian air defences; most of them were shot down over Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk, Tula, Smolensk, Ryazan, Kaluga, and the Moscow region. Tragically, a woman with a broken leg and the man tending to her perished during the explosions that started a fire that consumed a house in the Belgorod region, as Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov posted on social media.
Fires at fuel and energy complexes as well as electrical substations were among the additional damage the attacks inflicted over several locations. While officials in other impacted areas reported similar instances, Vladislav Shapsha, the head of the Kaluga region, verified that a drone strike had set alight an electrical substation.
Traditionally, Ukrainian authorities have not spoken out on attacks inside Russian territory. Still, it's clear that a lot of the drone attacks went for Russia's essential energy infrastructure, indicating a tactical change in Ukrainian operations.
The backdrop of these attacks is increased hostilities between Russia and Ukraine, both of which are using force. Ukraine said last night that seven missiles fired by Russia were intercepted by air defences in that country. Amidst the assault, the Ukrainian air force also brought down three reconnaissance drones.
Gov. Oleh Kiper of the Odesa region of Ukraine responded to the strikes by confirming ballistic missile-caused infrastructure damage, although he did not give any specifics. Former attacks had already damaged port infrastructure in the Black Sea city of Odesa, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Reports of Russian bombardment casualties add to the ongoing toll on civilians from the fighting. Gov. Oleh Syniehubov of Ukraine's Kharkiv area said that a nine-story apartment complex was attacked by shelling, killing a 50-year-old man and injuring a 60-year-old woman in Vovchansk.
(NEWSLINE PAPER TEAMS)