Russia and Ukraine trade more long-range drone attacks that are a hallmark of their war
Kyiv, Ukraine (AP) – Russian forces launched 363 Shahed and Lure drones as well as eight missiles in Ukraine overnight, Ukrainian Air Force said on Friday, saying the air defenses had stopped all drones except four and shot down six cruise missiles.
The Russian Ministry of Defense said that 39 Ukrainian drones had been slaughtered in several regions overnight, including 19 in the Rostov region and 13 in the Volgograd region. The two regions are found in the east of Ukraine.
Long -range drone strikes were a characteristic of war, now in its fourth year. The race by both parties to develop more and more sophisticated and mortal drones transformed war into a testing field for new weapons.
The Ukrainian Air Force said that 359 incoming drones were either intercepted or blocked electronically.
The Ukrainian attack forced three Russian airports to briefly suspend flights, officials said. The authorities also briefly closed the Crimean Bridge overnight while the drones were aiming for Crimea.
Neither Russia nor Ukraine have reported damage or major victims in attacks.
Russia manufactures Shahed drones based on an original Iranian model, turning thousands in a factory in the Tatarstan region. He upgraded the Shahed with his own innovations, including larger warheads.
They are known as suicide drones because they have turned into targets and explode on the impact, like a missile. The incessant buzzing of Shahed drones focused on the propeller is disturbing for anyone under his flight trajectory because no one on the ground knows exactly when or where the weapon will strike.
Being exceeded and exceeded the war against its largest neighbor, Ukraine has also developed its own advanced drone technology, including long -range sea drones, and has formed thousands of drone drivers.
Smaller with short -range drones are used by both sides on the battlefield and in areas near the front line of approximately 1,000 kilometers (620 miles).
These drones, equipped with cameras on board which give their operators a real -time view of possible targets, have also struck civil zones.
The United Nations Human Rights Surveillance Mission in Ukraine said in a report published Thursday that short -range drone attacks had killed at least 395 civilians and injured 2,635 between the start of the war and last April. Almost 90% of the attacks were carried out by the Russian armed forces, he reported.
Strikes have not only spread the fear of civilians, but also seriously disturbing daily life by limiting movements and limiting access to food and medical services, according to the report.
___
Follow the coverage of war by AP in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
