Russia downs 281 Ukrainian drones: Defence ministry

Moscow, Oct 25 (IANS) Russian air defence systems shot down 281 Ukrainian drones during the past day, including nine over the Moscow region, the Russian Defence Ministry said Saturday.

"Two guided aerial bombs and 281 fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been shot down by air defence systems," the ministry said in a statement.

The defence ministry said Friday that Russian air defence systems have shot down 1,441 Ukrainian UAVs over the past week, Xinhua news agency reported. Air defence systems have downed a Ukrainian Su-27 aircraft, four cruise missiles, 18 guided aerial bombs, 15 rocket projectiles of the US-made HIMARS multiple launch rocket system, as well as 1,441 fixed-wing UAVs, the ministry said in a statement.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched 62 drones and nine missiles during the overnight strike on Ukraine. Air defence units shot down 50 drones and four missiles.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that the city was targetted by ballistic missiles.

The attack sparked fires in several areas, shattered windows in residential buildings, and damaged a kindergarten in the eastern part of the city, Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said on social media.

Meanwhile, a dam on a local reservoir in Russia's Belgorod was damaged in a strike by the Ukrainian armed forces, a local official said Saturday.

"We understand that the enemy may attempt another strike to destroy the dam. If this occurs, there will be a risk of flooding the river floodplain from the Kharkiv region and several streets in our settlements, where approximately 1,000 residents live," Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on social media.

He noted that due to the threat of flooding, the regional government "is beginning to offer temporary shelter in Belgorod to residents who face flood risks and have no other alternatives."

On Friday, Gladkov said that Belgorod had been attacked by 47 drones, 35 of which were shot down and neutralized. Nine civilians were injured, including a 12-year-old boy.

--IANS

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