Russian proxy claims almost 30 drones downed over Crimea

The Russia-installed proxy head of Crimea Sergey Aksyonov claimed on July 18 that 28 drones were eliminated over the occupied peninsula overnight.

"At night in eastern Crimea, air defenses shot down nine unmanned aerial vehicles, and 19 more were neutralized with electronic warfare means. There are no causalities," Aksyonov wrote on Telegram.

The Kyiv Independent is unable to verify Aksyonov's claims.

The same night, Russian forces launched waves of drone attacks against southern Ukraine from the direction of the Black Sea. The Ukrainian military reported 21 Shahed kamikaze drones destroyed over Odesa Oblast and four over Mykolaiv Oblast.

Since August 2022, explosions and fires have regularly been reported on the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula. Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly vowed to return Crimea to Ukraine, occupied by Russia since 2014.

Explosions reported at Crimean Bridge, Russia blames Ukraine

Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack against the Crimean Bridge, which connects the occupied peninsula with Russia’s Krasnodar Oblast, on July 17.

The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek