Ukraine drone strikes kill at least 8 inside Russia, officials say
Russian officials reported warehouse, oil depot and residential hits as Zelenskyy said Ukraine struck logistics sites tied to Moscow’s war effort.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
3 min read
At least eight people were killed and more than 60 wounded in overnight Ukrainian drone attacks inside Russia, Russian officials said Saturday, after strikes hit warehouse sites, an oil depot and other locations across several regions.
The heaviest reported toll came in Kotovsk, in Russia’s Tambov region, where regional governor Yevgeny Pervyshov said seven night-shift workers died at a warehouse and 25 others were injured.
Russian officials said two large warehouses belonging to Wildberries, a major Russian online retailer, were hit: one in Kotovsk, roughly 220 miles from the Ukrainian border, and another in Elektrostal, about 30 miles east of Moscow.
Both sites caught fire, according to Russian officials. Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim said later Saturday morning that the blaze in Kotovsk had been extinguished. Russian online outlets published images and video that appeared to show flames at the Elektrostal facility, with thick smoke rising above the site.
Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyov said 37 people were wounded in his region, and that one of them later died in hospital. He also said drone debris struck a kindergarten building in Elektrostal, setting off a fire that was later put out.
Zelenskyy says logistics facilities were hit
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post Saturday that Ukrainian long-range strikes had hit two “significant logistical facilities” in the Moscow and Tambov regions.
Zelenskyy said the sites were used by Russia to supply sanctioned components for drone production and navigation equipment. He also said an oil facility was struck.
Vorobyov said a Ukrainian drone hit an oil depot in Noginsk, just north of Elektrostal, causing a fire. He said the incident prompted evacuations from a nearby maternity hospital and a residential building.
In Vladimir, about 110 miles east of Moscow, regional governor Alexander Avdeyev said a Ukrainian drone struck a residential building and caused a short-lived fire. He said no casualties were reported there.
Zelenskyy also said Ukrainian special operations forces carried out strikes against targets in the Sea of Azov and in occupied territory. He did not provide further details in the reported remarks.
Russia reports hundreds of drones intercepted
Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted 379 Ukrainian drones overnight. According to the ministry, the drones were downed over 19 Russian regions, as well as over illegally annexed Crimea, the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.
The attacks came as Kyiv continues its aerial campaign against energy infrastructure and military targets inside Russia. Ukrainian officials have presented such strikes as part of an effort to weaken Moscow’s war effort and bring the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine closer to Russians.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The war is now well into its fifth year, with drones playing a central role in attacks far from the front lines as well as in battlefield operations.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS News.