Ukraine's Mykolaiv and Sumy regions hit by Russian drone attacks

Infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Mykolaiv and northeastern Sumy regions was damaged during Russia's overnight drone attacks on the war-torn country, Ukrainian authorities said.

Mykolaiv Governor Vitaliy Kim stated on Telegram on Thursday that Russia's drone attack hit energy infrastructure in the region, causing blackouts in several areas, but no casualties were reported.

Meanwhile, the Sumy Regional Military Administration said the Russian attack on the region caused a fire at a two-story building near the settlement of Znob-Novhorodske, which is located about 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) south of Ukraine's border with Russia.

“When people were being helped, the Russians carried out repeated strikes, directing FPV (first-person view) drones at emergency services vehicles: an ambulance and a fire truck,” a corresponding statement said.

Separately, the Ukrainian Air Force claimed that the country's air defences shot down 22 out of 56 Russian drones over Sumy, Poltava, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, Odessa, Ternopil, and the Kiev region surrounding the capital.

“Five strikes by UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) on infrastructure facilities in the frontline areas were recorded,” the statement said, claiming that two Russian drones had left Ukraine’s airspace towards neighbouring Belarus.

Neither Russian nor Belarusian authorities have commented on the claims or the incidents.