Latest: Ukraine strikes Russia's Saratov oil refinery, military confirms.
A drone strike targeted the Saratov oil refinery in Russia's Saratov Oblast on Feb. 11, claimed Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation.
"The Saratov Oil Refinery is one of the key facilities in Russia's fuel infrastructure. Its refining capacity reaches 7 million tons of oil annually," Kovalenko said, adding that the refinery is crucial in supplying fuel to the Russian military.
The news comes as Ukraine is ramping up long-range drone strikes against Russian targets in the rear, focusing on oil facilities crucial for supplying the Russian military and feeding Moscow's war chest.
Saratov Oblast Governor Roman Busargin confirmed that drones struck an industrial facility in the region but did not specify whether it was the oil refinery.
"Operational services are working in the places where debris could have possibly fallen. According to preliminary data, there are no victims," he wrote on Telegram.
Russian Telegram channels reported explosions and a fire at the facility, while Russia's Defense Ministry claimed its air defenses shot down 40 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 18 over Saratov Oblast.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
Saratov, a city nearly 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) from Ukraine's border, hosts multiple strategic military and industrial sites.
The last known Ukrainian attack on Saratov Oblast occurred overnight on Jan. 8, igniting a large fire at an oil depot in the city of Engels, according to Russian Telegram channels.
Volodymyr Ivanyshyn
(Updated: )
