Russia claims Ukrainian drone attacks on Rostov, Belgorod oblasts

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that its forces downed four drones over Rostov Oblast and one over Belgorod Oblast overnight on April 12.

While Ukrainian officials did not claim responsibility for the alleged attacks, recent months saw an escalating campaign of strikes against Russian oil refineries and industrial facilities.

In Rostov Oblast, the drones were downed at 3:10 a.m. local time over the mining city of Novoshakhtinsk, the regional governor, Vasily Golubev, claimed.

The official alleged that no casualties or damage were recorded as a result of the attack without clarifying what was the intended target.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims. Ukrainian officials did not respond to a request for comment.

Ukranine's military intelligence spokesperson Andrii Yusov said on March 13 that the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery partially shut down as a result of a recent drone strike.

"Even though this is an oil refinery, it is a military facility that helps supply Russian occupying troops in Ukraine," Yusov said on air at the time.

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For the first time since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine attacked facilities in Russia’s Tatarstan Republic, some 1,300 kilometers from the country’s border. On April 2, overnight, drones attacked production facilities in the cities of Yelabuga and Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan Head Rustam M…

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Denisova