87 Ukrainian Drones Strike Russia in Overnight Attack

Ukrainian forces launched more than 80 drones in an attack on Russian regions overnight, the Russian Ministry of Defense said.

In a statement on Friday, the Defense Ministry said the drones targeted Russia’s Rostov region, which borders Ukraine to the southeast.

Since January, Kyiv has deployed drones to attack oil refineries and hubs on Russian soil, including in Rostov, as part of a campaign to hamper the gasoline production that fuels President Vladimir Putin‘s war economy.

“During the night, an attempt by the Kyiv regime to commit a terrorist attack with drones against targets on Russian territory was thwarted,” the Defense Ministry said in the statement.

It said Russian air defense systems downed 87 Ukrainian drones, including 70 targeting the Rostov region.

“The air defenses on duty intercepted and destroyed two drones over the Belgorod region [bordering Ukraine], two drones targeting the Volgograd region, six drones over the Voronezh region, six drones en route to the Kursk regions, as well as 70 drones over [Russia’s southern] Rostov region,” the Defense Ministry said.

The statement added that one drone was downed over Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014 and is not internationally recognized as Russian territory. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed to reclaim the Black Sea peninsula, and attacks on the region targeting air defense systems and Russia’s Black Sea Fleet have increased in intensity throughout the war.

Vasily Golubev, the governor of the Rostov region, said a “mass” drone attack on the city of Morozovsk caused a fire and disrupted local power supply, causing blackouts.

“Several settlements have fallen into the blackout zone,” Golubev said on Telegram.

Ukrainian media reported that the city houses a Russian military air base, and that Russian bombers—including its Su-24, Su-24M and Su-34 jets—are stationed there. Ukraine has frequently attacked Russian military bases, saying they are legitimate targets in the ongoing war.

In the Voronezh region, an unused tank at an oil depot was damaged by falling drone debris, Alexander Gusev, the region’s governor, said on Telegram.

“There was no fire, there were no casualties or other destruction of infrastructure,” he added.

Russia also launched an attack on Ukraine overnight, deploying 14 missiles and 17 kamikaze drones, according to Mykola Oleshchuk, the commander of Ukraine’s air force, who posted about the attack on Telegram. He said Ukraine shot down seven cruise missiles and 17 kamikaze drones.

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