Nine injured in huge Ukrainian drone attack on Russian region – governor
Multiple Ukrainian drones attacked the city of Lipetsk in western Russia overnight, leaving nine people injured, Governor Igor Artamonov said early on Friday.
One of the unmanned aerial vehicles was shot by the ground defenses but struck an energy infrastructure facility, leading to the detonation of explosives, the official said, adding that the blast occurred away from civilian buildings.
A fire also broke out at an airfield outside Lipetsk, local emergency officials said.
“Attention! Lipetsk was subjected to a massive UAV attack. Air defense is working. Don’t go near the windows. Take refuge in a safe place,” Artamonov wrote on Telegram.
A local electrical substation was also damaged in the barrage, the governor said.
Authorities in Russia’s Lipetsk Region have ordered the evacuation of residents from four villages: Koptsevy Khutora, Fedorovka, Yakovlevka, and Tynkovka. A state of emergency has been declared. Temporary accommodation and transport are being arranged for local residents.
Public transport has been suspended in the city of Lipetsk and the surrounding region. Local businesses should not “engage employees in non-emergency work until the red danger level is lifted,” the governor urged.
A total of 75 Ukrainian drones were destroyed overnight over Russian territory, most of them in the Belgorod and Lipetsk regions, according to the Defence Ministry.
Lipetsk Region is around 440 kilometers southeast of Moscow and 400 kilometers from Russia’s Kursk Region. Ukrainian forces penetrated the border area this week, in a major cross-border raid, which left several civilians dead and at least 66 wounded.
Over the course of the conflict between Kiev and Moscow, Ukrainian forces have routinely fired artillery, missiles, and explosive-laden drones at Russian border regions. They have also repeatedly targeted regions deep inside Russia.
Ukraine's attacks have caused numerous civilian casualties. The deadliest incident of the kind to date occurred in late December 2023, when a Ukrainian attack claimed the lives of 25 people and left more than 100 wounded in the city of Belgorod.
Moscow have repeatedly accused Kiev of using Western-supplied arms to “indiscriminately” fire at civilians.
Moscow has repeatedly warned that the delivery of weapons and other military aid to Kiev makes Western countries de facto direct participants to the conflict.
