Russia and Ukraine reported shooting down a significant number of drones during overnight assaults on each other’s territories, indicating continued drone warfare deep behind the front lines.
These drones, equipped for both bombing and surveillance, have played a crucial role in the conflict now in its second year.
The Ukrainian air force claimed it intercepted 37 drones resembling the Iranian “Shahed” model, along with three missiles targeting Ukraine, successfully neutralizing 33 drones across several regions including Kirovograd, Odesa, Kherson, Mykolaiv, and Kharkiv.
Meanwhile, Russia’s defense ministry announced the downing of 16 Ukrainian drones, with 15 destroyed over Volgograd, a region situated about 300 kilometers from the eastern Ukrainian frontlines, and another over the border area of Belgorod, a region frequently targeted since the onset of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
Additionally, a Russian attack in the Kharkiv region of northeast Ukraine resulted in five injuries, among them a three-year-old child, as reported by the regional governor Oleg Synegubov, who also shared images of damaged storefronts and a crater near a residential area.
The Ukrainian military fired around 100 munitions at populated areas in the Belgorod Region and attacked them with six unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on Thursday.
“In the Shebekino urban district, the settlement of Krasnoye was shelled by a grenade launcher, with 95 grenades hitting the area. There are no casualties. A private home went ablaze after it was hit by a grenade and fully burnt out,” the governor said.
Russia placed more than 700 foreign mercenaries, who have fought or are fighting alongside Ukrainian forces, on its wanted list, with absentee arrest warrants issued against them.
