Ukraine sent hundreds of drones into Russia early today, Russian officials said, in a sweeping overnight assault that killed two people and left several buildings burning.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes hit an export terminal in the western Rostov region, along with oil facilities in the Yaroslavl and Udmurtia regions, sites far beyond the front line.
“Last night, our long-range sanctions were effective in the Rostov region. An export terminal approximately 250 kilometres (155 miles) from the front line was hit,” Zelensky said in a post on Facebook.
“Deep strikes also targeted oil facilities in the Yaroslavl region and the Udmurt Republic, which is 1,300 kilometres from Ukraine’s state border,” he added.
“An overnight air attack has had tragic consequences. In Rostov-on-Don, two people were killed – a married couple,” Rostov region governor Yuri Slyusar said on Telegram.
Slyusar said in a later update that warehouses caught fire and several buildings were damaged, among them a homeless shelter.
In Belgorod, the Russian region that borders Ukraine, authorities said Ukrainian drones injured 12 people, including two children, and sparked a blaze at an apartment building.
Russia’s defence ministry said its air defences shot down 276 drones overnight.
Ukraine has intensified its retaliatory attacks inside Russia in recent months, part of an effort to increase pressure on Moscow to return to negotiations after nearly four-and-a-half years of war.
The United Nations said last month was the deadliest for civilians in Ukraine since April 2022, as Moscow expanded its long-range bombardment of towns and cities across the country.
Inside Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia regional governor Ivan Fedorov said one person was killed and two others were wounded when a guided aerial bomb and drones struck the southern city, which has endured heavy attacks in recent months.
In the northern Sumy region, governor Oleh Hryhorov said on Telegram that five people were wounded in a Russian guided aerial bomb attack.
Regional officials said the injured included an 88-year-old woman who sustained burns over much of her body.
Russia’s Defence Ministry also said today that its forces had struck two vessels carrying military cargo in Mykolaiv, a port city in southern Ukraine.
The attacks come as Russia and Ukraine intensify operations around the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, where both sides have targeted dozens of ships in recent weeks, including oil tankers and cargo vessels.
