Three people were killed and 25 injured in a Ukrainian overnight drone attack on the Russian city of Belgorod, local authorities said on Sunday, marking one of the most destructive strikes on the border city in recent weeks.
Acting Belgorod Governor Alexander Shuvayev said the attack sparked fires in two apartment buildings that were later extinguished by emergency services. He reported that a large number of residential and non-residential buildings were damaged in the assault, which occurred in the early hours of August 9.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it had destroyed more than 150 Ukrainian drones over the European part of the country, as well as over annexed Crimea, the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov in the past 24 hours. In Novorossiysk, a major Russian export port on the Black Sea, drone debris fell on two facilities, according to the city’s mayor Alexander Kravchenko.
Belgorod, located just 34 kilometers from Ukraine’s northeastern border and approximately 70 kilometers from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, has been a frequent target of Ukrainian attacks throughout the war. The city has faced repeated drone and missile strikes, with residents regularly subjected to air raid alerts.
The attack came amid an intensification of Ukrainian strikes deep into Russian territory. Over the past week, Ukrainian forces have targeted oil refineries, logistics facilities and military installations across western Russia, including strikes on the Ilsky and Syzran refineries in the Krasnodar and Samara regions.
Russia’s Defense Ministry also reported that its forces had launched strikes on Ukrainian port infrastructure in the Greater Odessa region, including Chornomorsk, Yuzhny, and Mykolaiv, as well as the Danube river ports. The military said the strikes targeted facilities used by Ukraine’s armed forces.
The overnight exchange of strikes continued the pattern of escalating aerial warfare that has defined the conflict’s recent phase, with both sides deploying hundreds of drones in single nights. Ukraine’s Air Force reported intercepting 174 Shahed-type drones and five Banderol missiles launched by Russia overnight.
Sources: Moscow Times, Kyiv Independent, ARN News
discussion