Russia attacks energy facilities while Ukraine fends off a nighttime drone attack

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on Ukraine on the night of October 16-17, using 56 attack drones and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of unknown type, as well as a guided air-to-surface missile of the Kh- 59 a violence.

Russia continues its deliberate daily airstrikes on residential areas to terrorize civilians and damage civilian infrastructure. Russian forces launch dozens of long-range Shahed “kamikaze” drones – mostly Iranian-designed Shahed 131 or 136 – every night, often firing multiple missiles during the attack.

The military reported that the occupiers fired the missile from Russia’s Kursk Oblast, while drones were fired from Kursk, Oryol and Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Russia. Ukrainian defense forces, including aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare units and mobile fire groups of the Air Force and Defense Forces, took part in repelling the attack.

According to the report, Ukrainian air defenders successfully shot down 22 drones in various regions, including Sumy, Kiev, Poltava, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, Odessa and Ternopil oblasts. In addition, 27 attack drones and UAVs of unknown type were locally lost “due to active electronic warfare countermeasures” while two other UAVs flew towards Belarus.

The report’s figures suggest that at least five drones may have reached their targets in frontline areas.

In Mykolaiv Oblast, energy infrastructure was attacked, resulting in power outages. Vitaliy Kim, head of the Mykolaiv Oblast Military Administration, said energy workers had already restored electricity to most consumers, but the work was still ongoing.

In Kiev, Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that drone debris was found on the grounds of a kindergarten in the Desnianskyi district, shattering a window in the building. No other damage or casualties were reported in this incident. The Kiev city military administration added that Russian drones were approaching the capital in waves from different directions and air raid alarms sounded four times throughout the night.

The attack also resulted in damage to a multi-story residential building in Kyiv’s Desnianskyi district, with windows and interior furnishings on three floors damaged. No injuries were reported in this incident.

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