A Ukrainian soldier was photographed operating a drone aimed at Russian military targets. In response, the Russian Defense Ministry announced today that their forces successfully shot down 125 Ukrainian drones attempting to enter Russian airspace overnight. Local officials across various regions of Russia reported minor damage resulting from these drone strikes, yet thankfully, there were no casualties.

According to AFP, the Russian Defense Ministry shared in a Telegram post that their air defense systems were able to intercept and destroy 125 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones.

Out of these, 67 drones were taken down over Volgograd Oblast in southern Russia. Governor Andrey Bocharov of Volgograd reported that remnants of the destroyed drones caused grass fires; however, he confirmed that there were no injuries or significant damage.

In addition, 17 drones were shot down over Belgorod and Voronezh Oblasts. Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev noted that some of the drones that fell ignited fires in two residential buildings located in Voronezh city and its outskirts, yet again, no casualties were reported.

Eighteen other drones were destroyed over Rostov Oblast, with Governor Vasily Golubev stating via Telegram that, based on operational information, there were no casualties or material losses reported from the ground.

The Russian Defense Ministry also confirmed the interception of one drone each over Bryansk, Kursk, and Krasnodar Oblasts, along with three drones intercepted over the Sea of Azov.

Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, a conflict that has now extended beyond two and a half years, the Russian government claims to have shot down Ukrainian drones nearly every day, a response to what Kyiv describes as retaliatory strikes against Russian military operations.