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A military truck with the letter Z, a tactical insignia of Russian troops in Ukraine, rides past a sign that reads "Kursk, the city of military glory" near the Russian city of Kursk in May 2023. (Olga Maltseva/AFP via Getty Images)
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A fire broke out in Russia's city of Kursk late on April 2, according to videos sent by eye-witnesses to several Telegram monitoring channels. Kursk Oblast Governor Roman Starovoit claimed that four drones were shot down over the city and surrounding areas.  

The city mayor said via his official Telegram page that the attack damaged several residential buildings. There were no casualties. The Kyiv Independent is not able to verify this information.

Kursk lies in the south of Russia, around 90 kilometers from the border with Ukraine.

Russia has been reporting drone attacks against its border regions for several months, with numerous strikes against oil refineries occurring in March. Since the onset of the full-scale war, Ukraine has intensified its strikes on oil infrastructure within Russia, particularly escalating in the late fall of 2023.

According to The Insider, there have been 15 drone attacks against 13 oil refineries in nine regions of Russia in 2024. Moscow has repeatedly accused Ukraine of being behind drone strikes. Ukraine hasn't claimed responsibility for these attacks.

According to a source within Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR), a manufacturing facility for Shahed-type attack drones in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan was targeted by HUR operatives on April 2.

Drones hit industrial facilities in Tatarstan's Yelabuga and Nizhnekamsk, allegedly injuring several people. Yelabuga is located over 1,200 kilometers away from the Russia-Ukraine border.

Russia's military has frequently employed Iranian-designed Shahed-type kamikaze drones to carry out attacks on Ukrainian cities and critical infrastructure during the ongoing full-scale invasion, resulting in the deaths and injuries of numerous civilians.

Ukrainian drones hit one Russian oil refinery after another
Ukraine faces a challenging problem: how to stop a resurgent Moscow in its tracks long enough to rotate the troops, resupply, and fortify. Part of the answer is playing out right now in the skies over Russia. Over the past two weeks, at least dozens of Ukrainian drones reportedly struck

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12:24 PM

Hungary's parliament passes bill on ICC withdrawal.

The government-proposed bill, supported by 134 lawmakers, would see Hungary exit the international body that it co-founded in 2002. The Hague-based court is tasked with prosecuting international crimes of genocide, war crimes, or crimes against humanity.
9:38 AM

Russian attacks kill 1, injure 13 in Ukraine over past day.

Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 93 of the 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy drones launched by Russia overnight, the Air Force said. Thirty-five of them were shot down, while 58 were neutralized by electronic warfare systems, according to the statement.
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