Overnight Russian drone strikes ignited a fire in Kyiv, and injured a woman and damaged multiple houses in the northeastern city of Sumy, Ukrainian officials reported Monday.
The Ukrainian military said on Monday that it had shot down 61 out of 83 drones with 22 more likely downed by electronic warfare.
Kyiv, Sumy Targetted
No injuries were reported in the Russian drone strike that sparked a fire at a non-residential building in Kyiv, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
But a 38-year-old woman was hospitalised after Russia launched drones at Sumy, which is the administrative centre of the broader Sumy region, Ihor Kalchenko, governor of the region said on Telegram.
Five houses were also damaged, he added.
The photos posted by the emergency services from the site showed cars engulfed in flames next to a high-rise building with damaged windows.
Damages Caused
The emergency services said the attack knocked out more than 300 windows and prompted the evacuation of 65 residents from the damaged homes.
There was no comment from Russia.
Both sides deny targeting civilians in the full-scale invasion Russia launched in February 2022. But thousands of civilians have died in the conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian.
Drone War Escalated
In recent months, drone strikes between Russia and Ukraine have intensified, marking a new phase in the ongoing conflict.
Both sides in the Ukraine conflict have turned cheap commercial drones into deadly weapons and also increased their production.
Russian and Ukrainian soldiers alike have reported a visceral fear of drones, and both sides have used video footage of fatal drone strikes in their propaganda.
Earlier on February 3, Ukraine launched a drone strike on energy facilities in southern Russia, setting off fires at a key oil refinery and gas processing plant, while also disrupting air travel from the Volga to the Caucasus Mountains.
Days before the attack, Russia launched a devastating series of drone and missile strikes on Ukraine, resulting in at least eight fatalities and extensive damage to residential buildings and energy infrastructure nationwide.
(With inputs from Reuters)
