Ukrainian Drone Strike Kills 12 in Russia’s Tatarstan Region
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
A Ukrainian drone strike on Russia’s central Tatarstan region killed at least 12 people and injured 39 others, regional authorities said on Monday, marking one of the deadliest single Ukrainian attacks inside Russia since the war began more than four years ago.
The attack targeted the industrial city of Nizhnekamsk, a major energy and oil refining hub located more than 1,000 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.
Drone attack hits key industrial region
According to the Tatarstan regional press service, the casualties were caused by a large-scale drone attack on Nizhnekamsk.
Videos circulating on social media, which have not been independently verified, appeared to show thick black smoke rising from an oil facility near the city.
Tatarstan is home to several major oil refineries and energy infrastructure sites that Ukraine has increasingly targeted in long-range strikes.
Zelensky says oil refinery operations are being targeted
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X that operations targeting Russian oil refining infrastructure were continuing and that Russian air defence systems and radar stations had also been struck.
He said Ukraine was pursuing diplomatic efforts while continuing military operations against Russian infrastructure in the Azov and Black Sea regions.
Russia claims hundreds of drones intercepted
Russia’s Defence Ministry reportedly said its air defences intercepted 456 Ukrainian drones launched overnight. The ministry did not specify how many drones reached their intended targets.
Earlier, Tatarstan authorities had described the assault as a “massive” Ukrainian drone attack.
Russian strikes kill civilians in Ukraine
The escalation continued on the Ukrainian side of the border, where officials said a Russian artillery strike on the village of Bugaivka in the Kharkiv region killed five people.
The regional prosecutor’s office said residential buildings were destroyed in the attack.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 126 drones overnight.
Separate attacks also claimed civilian lives elsewhere. A woman was killed in a Ukrainian strike in Russia’s Belgorod region, while a Russian drone attack killed a man travelling in a taxi in Ukraine’s Kherson region.
The latest attacks reflect a sharp intensification of long-range strikes by both Russia and Ukraine, with the United Nations reporting a rise in civilian casualties in recent months.
