At least five Russian Shahed-type kamikaze drones flew off course and entered into Russia-ally Belarus during an overnight mass attack on Ukraine on July 31, the Belarusian Hajun monitoring group reported.
According to the group, this was the largest entry of Russian drones into Belarus's airspace since the start of the full-scale invasion. Earlier, at least four Shahed drones that were launched at targets in Ukraine veered off course and entered deep into the country between July 11 and July 16.
The first drone entered Belarusian airspace at around 11:20 p.m. local time, shortly after which a fighter jet was scrambled from the Baranovichi airfield, the group said.
While most of the drones almost immediately exited the country into Ukrainian airspace, one of them traveled more than 260 kilometers (around 161 miles) over Belarus, reaching the town of Stolin in Brest Oblast.
The fighter jet was spotted in southeastern Belarus near the border with Ukraine and was in the air for over an hour, Hajun reported.
"The fighter was conducting an intensive search for targets and was lifted not just for reconnaissance, but for the purposeful detection of Shaheds over Belarus," the group said.
Russia launched its most extensive drone attack on Kyiv in 2024 overnight on July 31. Air defense forces destroyed over 40 drones in the city's airspace and nearby areas, the local authorities reported.
In total, Russia launched 89 Shahed-type attack drones at Ukraine overnight, all of which were shot down by Ukrainian air defenses, according to the Air Force.
Kate Tsurkan
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