Russia downs 170 drones, eight western missiles over Crimea
Russia on Saturday said it has downed 170 drones and more than 10 guided missiles overnight over Crimea and several border regions with Ukraine.
In a press release on its Telegram channel, the defence ministry said between 2200 hours Friday and 0500 hours Saturday, Russian air defence units have destroyed 96 fixed wing drones over Crimea, 47 over Krasnodar territory, 9 over Rostov, 8 each over Bryansk and Kursk regions in South West of Moscow. Two UAVs were also downed over the Belgorod region.
Besides these, 8 Britain-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles and 3 Ukraine-developed Neptune-MD guided missiles were destroyed over the Black Sea. In the early hours on Saturday, 14 Ukrainian naval drones were destroyed in the Black Sea, the ministry said.
A Russian drone strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, wounded 47 people, officials said, and prompted another appeal from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for more decisive support from the country’s allies.
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said drones hit 12 locations across the city late Friday. Residential buildings, civilian infrastructure and vehicles were damaged in the assault, according to Kharkiv regional Gov Oleh Syniehubov.
The Kharkiv Prosecutor’s Office said that Russian forces used drones with thermobaric warheads.
Thermobaric weapons create a powerful blast wave causing large-scale destruction.
Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency announced Kyiv had destroyed a Russian Su-30 fighter jet using a missile fired from a seaborne drone.
‘Can’t ensure safety of those at Moscow parade’
Rejecting the Kremlin offer for a three-day ceasefire to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory Day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday warned the foreign dignitaries invited by Russia to watch the Red Square parade on May 9, that he cannot guarantee their safety. At this, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said that nobody could guarantee that the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv would survive to see May 10 if Ukraine attacked Moscow on V-Day.
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