Drone strike exchange leaves one dead and one injured in Ukraine

Moscow and Kyiv echanged a number of drone strikes, with both sides partially successful in intercepting some of them.

On the night of 3 January, Russian air defences reportedly destroyed 16 Ukrainian drones. According to the Russian Ministry of Defence, 10 of the drones were downed over Bryansk Region, three over Smolensk, and one each over Belgorod, Pskov, and the Leningrad regions.

Leningrad regional governor Alexander Drozdenko stated that one drone had been shot down near Luga Bay, located in the Gulf of Finland, and confirmed there were no casualties or damage. The Telegram channel "Careful, news" suggested that the drone had attempted to target the Ust-Luga seaport. Drozdenko later reported two more drones being downed in the Luga Bay area, with one falling in a nearby forest.

In St. Petersburg, Pulkovo airport imposed two separate flight restrictions on the night and morning of 3-4 January. 20 flights were diverted to alternative airports.

In the Belgorod region, a drone strike left a resident of the village of Prelestnoye with a shrapnel wound to his leg, according to regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov. The attack caused damage to a private home, including shattered windows, a damaged façade, and a destroyed fence. Power lines were also affected in the village of Prokhorovka, while a gas pipeline and a private house’s fence were damaged in Mikhailovka. The governors of Smolensk and Bryansk confirmed that no casualties or significant damage had been reported in their areas. The governor of Pskov Region has yet to comment on the attack.

Residents in Safonovo, Smolensk Region, reported hearing explosions overnight. The city is home to the Avangard plant of the Tactical Missile Armament State Corporation, which manufactures rocket engine casings, launch containers and armoured components. The Ukrainian Telegram channel "Exilenova+" suggested that the plant may have been the intended target, but no damage to the facility has been reported.

One person killed in Ukraine

Meanwhile, a resident of Kyiv Region who had been seriously injured in a Russian strike on Friday died in hospital, according to Mykola Kalashnik, the acting head of the region’s military administration. Kalashnik told Radio Liberty on Saturday that the woman, born in 2002, had sustained a severe abdominal wound. Another person remains in intensive care with a back injury. On 3 January, one person was killed and four others injured in a separate night-time drone attack.

The Russian government continues to deny that its military is intentionally targeting civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.