Russia says it intercepted 35 Ukrainian drones

MOSCOW: Russia said it intercepted 35 Ukrainian drones in a fresh wave of attacks, a day after repelling one of the heaviest UAV swarms in weeks.

Air defences downed 33 drones overnight in Russia's Lipetsk, Rostov and Volgograd regions, the Defence Ministry in Moscow said on its Telegram channel. It later reported that two drones had been destroyed in the Volgograd region on Sunday morning. Russian news services cited governors of the Lipetsk and Volgograd regions as saying there were no casualties or damage.

The strikes came a day after Russia said it downed almost 40 Ukrainian drones. Most were shot down over Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula Russian forces have occupied since 2014, with others destroyed in Russia's Kursk and Belgorod regions.


The weekend attacks followed intense Russian drone and missile strikes targeting several Ukrainian regions, including Kyiv and port infrastructure in the Danube area, over the past week. Ukraine said Russia also fired a Kinzhal hypersonic missile while Russian President Vladimir Putin was holding a media event Thursday in which he vowed to win the war.