Ukraine hits Russian seaport, oil refinery in reported drone strikes
Editor's Note: This is a developing story.
Ukrainian drones hit Russia's Temryuk seaport in Krasnodar Krai and the Syzran Oil Refinery in Samara Oblast in overnight strikes on Dec. 4-5, Russian officials and media reported.
The Temryuk port was damaged after a drone strike caused fires to break out on site, the Krasnodar Krai Operational Headquarters reported. Earlier, local residents said the port was under attack and that fuel tanks were burning.
Regional authorities did not specify what was hit at the port but said "elements of the port infrastructure in Temryuk were damaged." All personnel were evacuated and there were no casualties, according to the Operational Headquarters.
The Temryuk port is a key Russian facility in the Sea of Azov. It operates an oil export terminal, receiving, storing, and shipping Russian petroleum products.
The same night, residents of the city of Syzran in Samara Oblast reported explosions at the local oil refinery, according to the Russian opposition news channel Astra. Residents posted videos and images of the attack on social media.
Syzran Mayor Sergey Volodchenkov confirmed the drone attack against the city but did not mention any targets by name.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these reports at the time of publication.
The Syzran Oil Refinery, lying around 700 kilometers (430 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border, was opened in 1942 and belongs to the Russian state-owned oil company Rosneft. It has a reported annual processing capacity of 8.5 million tons.
The facility has been targeted in previous drone as part of Ukraine's campaign against the Russian oil industry, which provides funding and fuel for Moscow's war machine.
Ukraine repeatedly uses homegrown long-range drones to launch attacks on Russia's oil infrastructure. Ukrainian government and military officials have referred to these strikes as Kyiv's "long-range sanctions."
