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Ukraine strikes in heart of Russia with drone attack 1,000km beyond frontline

Russian authorities said the attacks damaged residential buildings in the city of Kazan

Holly Evans
Saturday 21 December 2024 14:00 EST
Drone strikes high-rise building in Russian city of Kazan

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Ukraine brought the war into the heart of Russia on Saturday morning with drone attacks that local authorities said damaged residential buildings in the city of Kazan in the Tatarstan region, over 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) from the front line.

The press service of Tatarstan's governor, Rustam Minnikhanov, said that eight drones attacked the city. Six hit residential buildings, one hit an industrial facility and one was shot down over a river, the statement said.

It comes as Moscow’s troops continue to slowly advance in eastern Ukraine, with their defence ministry stating they had taken control of the village of Kostiantynopolske in the Donetsk province.

The village lies just six miles from the besieged city of Kurakhove, which they are currently trying to encircle.

In a video posted on local Telegram news channel Astra, a drone flying into the upper floors of a high-rise building in Kazan.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russia’s security services, also published unverified video footage showing an aerial object crashing into a high-rise building, producing a large fireball.

Local authorities said there were no casualties. Flights were halted for several hours at Kazan’s airport and all mass gatherings were canceled on Saturday and Sunday.

The Defence Ministry said the city had been attacked by three waves of drones between 7:40am and 9:20 am. It said three drones were destroyed by air defence systems and three others by electronic warfare systems.

The attacks, which Ukraine didn’t acknowledge in keeping with its security policy, comes after a Ukrainian attack Friday on a town in Russia’s Kursk border region using U.S.-supplied missiles killed six people, including a child.

Moscow sent 113 drones into Ukraine overnight into Saturday, Ukrainian officials said. According to Ukraine’s Air Force, 57 drones were shot down during the attacks. A further 56 drones were “lost,” likely having been electronically jammed.

The governor of Ukraine's Kharkiv region, Oleh Syniehubov, said eight people were wounded Friday night in drone attacks on the regional capital, also called Kharkiv.

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