Overnight Ukrainian Drone Attacks in Russia Cause Fatalities

Russian authorities reported on Saturday that overnight Ukrainian drone attacks resulted in the deaths of eight people and injuries to over 60 others. The attacks targeted energy infrastructure and military sites across Russia, as part of Kyiv’s ongoing efforts to weaken Russia’s war operations and bring the impact of its invasion of Ukraine to Russians’ attention.

The attacks included strikes on two large warehouses belonging to Wildberries, a major online retailer in Russia. One warehouse is located in Kotovsk, approximately 360 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, and the other in Elektrostal, around 50 kilometers east of Moscow. Both warehouses were set ablaze, though Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim confirmed the fire in Kotovsk had been extinguished by Saturday morning. Visual media from Russian outlets show significant smoke rising from the Elektrostal facility.

A Ukrainian drone also targeted an oil depot in Noginsk, north of Elektrostal. This attack sparked a fire and led to the evacuation of a nearby maternity hospital and a residential building, according to Moscow region governor, Andrei Vorobyov.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, through a Telegram message on Saturday, acknowledged the strikes. He confirmed that Ukrainian forces successfully hit two key logistical facilities in the Moscow and Tambov regions. According to Zelenskyy, these facilities supplied prohibited components for drone and navigation equipment production. He also mentioned the attack on an oil facility.

In Kotovsk, the warehouse attack resulted in the deaths of seven night-shift workers and injuries to 25 others, as stated by Tambov regional governor Yevgeny Pervyshov. In the Moscow region, a total of 37 individuals suffered injuries, with one succumbing in the hospital, as noted by Vorobyov. In Elektrostal, debris from a drone strike also affected a kindergarten, igniting a fire that was later controlled.

In Vladimir, situated over 110 miles east of Moscow, a Ukrainian drone hit a residential building. This caused a short-lived fire, but no casualties were reported, according to Vladimir governor Alexander Avdeyev.

Zelenskyy also mentioned that Ukrainian special operations had conducted further strikes on targets in the Sea of Azov and occupied territories. The Russian Defense Ministry reported that its air defenses intercepted 379 Ukrainian drones overnight, spanning 19 Russian regions, annexed Crimea, the Sea of Azov, and the Black Sea.