At least three injured in Russian regions hit by Ukrainian shelling, drones: Moscow

Russian officials on Sunday (Oct 1) reported a wave of attacks by Ukrainian drones and shelling which left three people injured and forced an airport to divert flights, reported news agency AFP. Russia also claims to have shot down six Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and two Ukrainian missiles over Crimea.

Ukraine shelling injured three in Belgorod: Governor

Governor of Russia’s Belgorod region which borders Ukraine, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said that on Sunday morning Ukrainian forces shelled the area of the central market in Shebekino.

He added, “According to preliminary information, there are three victims – a woman suffered shrapnel wounds to the neck... Two other men suffered shrapnel wounds to their legs.”

Meanwhile, the governor of Russia’s Bryansk region, which also borders Ukraine, said Ukrainian shelling hit a village and damaged houses and two administrative buildings but that there were no casualties, according to AFP.

Russia shoots down Ukrainian drones and missiles

The Russian air defence system shot down a Ukrainian drone in the southern Krasnodar region, on the Black Sea coast, at around 0500 GMT, said Moscow’s defence ministry, as per Reuters.

Furthermore, it also claimed to have shot down three drones over the western Smolensk region, west of Moscow, around 0600 GMT and two more over the region around an hour later.

“An attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out a terrorist attack with two operational-tactical Grom-2 missiles was thwarted,” said the Russian defence ministry in a statement, adding that missiles were shot down over the Dzhankoi region.

The Russian defence ministry on Sunday also said that the country’s air defences had intercepted five United States-made HIMARS shells, an air-launched JDAM bomb and 37 Ukrainian drones over Ukrainian territory in the last 24 hours.

Russia said those interceptions had occurred on the territory where Moscow is fighting what it calls a “special military operation”.

Sergei Aksyonov, the Russia-installed head of Crimea, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014, said that there were no casualties due to the reported attacks.

‘Temporary flight restriction’ in Russia

The international airport in the Russian city of Sochi, on the Black Sea coast, delayed 13 flights and cancelled one, following the attack, according to the British newspaper Daily Express.

“On the morning of 1 October, Sochi airport imposed a temporary flight restriction. Six flights were diverted to alternate aerodromes,” said Sochi International Airport in a statement.

AFP also reported a brief closure of the Crimea bridge, which connects the Moscow-annexed peninsula to the Russian mainland, on Sunday, but the reason was not immediately known.

Ukraine shoots down 16 of 30 Russian drones

Ukrainian Air Forces, on Sunday (Oct 1) claimed to have shot down 16 out of around 30 drones that Russia launched on Ukraine's territory overnight. The drones were launched from the southern, southeastern and northern directions, said the Ukrainian forces, on Telegram.

Officials also reported an attack in the central Ukrainian Cherkasy region, where one person was reportedly injured.

“At night, the enemy massively attacked our Cherkasy region with attack drones. Unfortunately, there were hits on industrial infrastructure in (the city of) Uman,” said Cherkasy Governor Ihor Taburets.

He added, “As a result, fires broke out in warehouses. In particular, where grain was stored.” Taburets also said that one person was injured.

Meanwhile, a statement by the Ukrainian presidential office also reported damage to civilian infrastructure and warehouses in southern Mykolaiv region and eastern Dnipropetrovsk region.

(With inputs from agencies)

Disclaimer: A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia war on the ground and online. While WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

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