Russia and Ukraine blame each other after drone strikes kill at least seven

A wave of overnight and daytime drone strikes struck across both sides of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, leaving at least seven people dead and more than forty wounded, according to regional and military reports.

Casualties and Border Region Impacts

In the Russian-controlled Perm region, Governor Dmitry Makhonin stated that air defences shot down 39 drones during overnight attacks. One person later died from injuries sustained in the strike, and emergency services worked to contain a fire at a damaged industrial facility.

Media additions

Ulyanovsk Governor Aleksey Russkikh reported that Ukrainian drone strikes damaged industrial and civilian infrastructure. He initially reported eight people injured before revising the casualty toll to 12 wounded.

In the border region of Voronezh, Governor Aleksandr Gusev said 13 people were injured in the regional capital, noting that drone debris caused damage to non-residential and industrial buildings. Meanwhile, Rostov Governor Yury Slyusar reported that the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery sustained damage and temporarily suspended operations. Although no casualties were reported initially at the refinery, debris later damaged two residential buildings in the Myasnikovsky district.

Across the border in Ukraine, the Kyiv City Military Administration reported one person injured from overnight strikes, while Mayor Vitaly Klitschko stated that one person was killed and 20 others wounded. A subsequent daytime drone strike on an office building in Kyiv killed three people and injured seven more. In the Odesa region, Governor Oleh Kiper initially reported one person killed and another wounded in strikes targeting a residential area and postal logistics facilities, with the regional prosecutor's office later updating the death toll to two killed and two injured.

Drones Intercepted and Mutual Targets

Both nations reported extensive air defence engagement during the exchanges.

According to the Russian Defence Ministry, forces struck a drone assembly and storage site operated by the Ukrainian defence technology company Fire Point in Boryspil, located in the Kyiv region. The ministry also reported hitting two logistics centres in Odesa and Nerubaiske, port infrastructure and storage facilities in Reni, and a dry-cargo vessel heading to Odesa.

Kyiv region Governor Tymur Tkachenko noted that a production facility in the Boryspil district, a warehouse in the Brovary district, and three private homes in the Obukhiv district sustained damage, though no casualties were recorded there.

On the Ukrainian side, the General Staff confirmed that overnight attacks hit oil refineries in Perm and Novoshakhtinsk. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy added that the strikes also hit the Iskra defence plant in Ulyanovsk and two radar stations in the Rostov region.

Context of Infrastructure Attacks

The latest wave of cross-border attacks builds on months of intensified strikes targeting logistics centres, ports, and energy infrastructure.

Both governments maintain that their strikes focus strictly on military targets or facilities connected to military activities, denying any deliberate targeting of civilians. Independent verification of the claims and casualty figures from either side remains difficult given the ongoing conflict.