The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine took a dramatic turn on Sunday as Russia reported repelling a massive drone attack targeting its western regions. Officials claimed that over 100 Ukrainian drones were intercepted, with the Kursk border region bearing the brunt of the attack, seeing 43 drones shot down.
This attack comes after a series of events on Saturday, including a Russian ballistic missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, which resulted in 17 injuries. The strike damaged homes and businesses, according to local authorities.
The Russian Defence Ministry detailed the drone attack, confirming that 110 drones were destroyed across seven regions. In the Nizhny Novgorod region, four firefighters sustained injuries while combating a drone attack in the industrial zone of Dzerzhinsk, located near an explosive factory.
The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, in a Telegram post, claimed to have targeted the state-owned Sverdlov factory in Dzerzhinsk. They alleged that the factory produced chemical components for artillery ammunition and aerial bombs. They also reported a drone attack on a military airfield in the Lipetsk region, resulting in a fire. However, the Associated Press was unable to independently verify these claims.
This latest incident echoes a similar drone attack at the end of September, where Russia’s Ministry of Defense reported the destruction of 125 drones across seven regions.
The Ukrainian air force disclosed that Russia launched a total of 49 drones and two Iskander-M ballistic missiles overnight. They reported successfully downing 31 drones over 12 regions, including Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital. Another 13 drones disappeared from radar, suggesting they were disabled by electronic defenses.
In a statement on social media, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the past week as a period of relentless Russian attacks, with over 800 guided aerial bombs and 500 attack drones launched against Ukrainian cities and communities. He denounced these actions as deliberate terror against the Ukrainian people and called for continued air support from Ukraine’s allies. “United in defense, the world can stand against this targeted terror,” he emphasized.