Two Russian Shahed-type kamikaze drones flew into Belarus overnight on July 16, the third and fourth to do so in the last week, according to the Belarusian Hajun monitoring group.
One of the drones entered Belarusian airspace just after 4 a.m. local time and traveled some 50 kilometers (around 30 miles) before exiting the country into Ukrainian airspace, the group said.
⚡️On the night of July 16, a kamikaze drone of the Shahed type entered the airspace of Belarus for the 3rd time lately. This was first reported by the Telegram channel “Nikolayevskyi Vanyok” at 04:10.
— Belarusian Hajun project (@Hajun_BY) July 16, 2024
According to our data, the Shahed entered Belarus near Belaya Saroka village… pic.twitter.com/Vh3BpxOmKF
The second entered Belarus at 8:40 a.m. and then proceeded to fly a winding path of more than 300 kilometers (185 miles) toward the city of Mahiliou.
A Belarusian Su-30 fighter jet and Mi-24 helicopter were scrambled to intercept the drone, Hajun reports.
The Shahed drone flew to Mahiliou: military aircraft over the city
— Belarusian Hajun project (@Hajun_BY) July 16, 2024
The Shahed kamikaze drone, which entered Belarus at 08:40 and was flying towards Naroulia, has now presumably flown to Mahiliou.
At 09:15, a Su-30 fighter of the Belarusian Air Force was raised from… pic.twitter.com/BROMN4iPsU
The drone's current whereabouts or where it crashed have not yet been reported.
Ukraine's Air Force reported shooting down two Shahed drones on July 16, with two more "located in the airspace of Belarus."
On July 13, another Russian Shahed kamikaze drone targeting Ukraine veered off course and flew more than 350 kilometers (220 miles) over Belarusian airspace, following a similar incident two days earlier.
Elsewhere, a Ukrainian drone dropped explosives on a factory in the Russian town of Korenovo, Kursk Oblast, acting Governor Alexei Smirnov said on July 16.
The resulting explosion caused a fire that first responders were working to extinguish, Smirnov said at 12:32 a.m. local time. He claimed that no factory workers were injured in the fire.
Separately, Smirnov said that a Ukrainian drone dropped explosives on the town of Tyotkino, located some 70 kilometers (43 miles) from Korenovo. Smirnov claimed that the explosives landed on a house and injured its resident.
Ukrainian authorities have not publicly commented on either of these claims, and the Kyiv Independent cannot independently verify them.
Asami Terajima
(Updated: )
