Russian drone strike on Ukraine’s Sumy region injures 14 and damages infrastructure

An overnight Russian drone strike on the city of Konotop in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region has injured 14 people and caused significant damage to infrastructure, the regional military administration reported on Thursday.

Two injured civilians were hospitalised after the attack, one of whom is in a coma, according to Konotop’s Mayor Artyom Semenikhin, who added that victims were continuing to arrive at the city’s hospitals.

Semenikhin reported that the attack “heavily damaged” the city’s energy infrastructure, causing widespread power outages and interruptions to the water supply, as well as serious damage to residential buildings and medical institutions.

The Ukrainian Air Force said that Russia had used Iranian Shahed-136 drones in the attack. Known for being cheap but effective, Shahed drones have regularly been used by Russia to strike Ukraine, often being launched in large numbers to overwhelm air defence systems.

Russia’s Defence Ministry is yet to comment on Thursday’s drone attack. At the same time the ministry reported the downing of five Ukrainian drones over Russia’s Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk regions, which border Ukraine. There were no reports of casualties or damage due to the attack, according to the ministry.

The strikes came hours after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British counterpart, David Lammy met with Ukrainian officials in Kyiv to announce a new $700 million (€635 million) aid package, aimed at bolstering Ukraine’s energy grid ahead of the winter months.

Russia has systematically targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since the start of the war, causing widespread damage and limiting electricity and water supply for Ukraine’s civilian population. In return, Ukrainian drones have struck deeper inside Russia in recent months, in an attempt to reduce Russia’s lucrative oil and gas production.