Ukrainian drone strike hits second Russian oil refinery in a week

Ukraine says its forces have succeeded in refining oil in the Russian town of Kstovo, about 800 km (500 miles) of the front lines in eastern Ukraine.

The Ukrainian media said that four drones struck Lukoil Company Depot, adding that the facility had suffered from severe damage.

The video clips on social media showed large fires rising on an industrial facility.

Regional ruler, Jleib Nikitin, said that the drones fell on the industrial area, and that no victims were reported at the scene.

SMOLENSK, the governor of the Smolnsk region, said, on a telegram, said that a “huge” drone attack against “civil infrastructure” had occurred in his area, although no victims were reported immediately.

Anchr said that one of the drones had been dropped when an elbow was hit. The BBC was unable to verify this information independently.

Mother and her young child were killed in the border area of ​​Belgoud, who was repeatedly attacked by Ukraine since the beginning of the full invasion of Russia in February 2022.

Fayachislav Ghadkov, the governor of Beljorod, said that another child and his father were also injured in the strike.

The strike on Kstovo, Smonsk and Belgorod were part of a larger attack overnight, as Russia said it had shot down more than 100 Ukrainian drones that led Saint Petersburg and Kazan airports to suspend operations overnight.

It is one of the largest Ukrainian operations of its kind during the war and the second a huge drone attack this week. On Friday, Ukraine hit another Russian oil refinery and targeted Moscow during an attack that included at least 121 drones.

While Ukrainian drones were gathering the sky of Russia, Moscow launched a night attack on its own, which led to air alerts in various Ukrainian regions.

The Ukrainian army said it had dropped 29 Russian aircraft aircraft in nine regions.

As the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approaches, the conflict continues.

Russia is making the small regular progress in eastern Ukraine, as it is close to the strategic Boukerrovsk city, which plays a decisive role as a logistical center used by the Ukrainian forces in the region.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian forces still stick to several hundred kilometers of land in the western Kurz region, where they launched an attack on lightning in August.