A fire broke out overnight at a major Russian oil refinery in the southwestern Volgograd region, authorities said Saturday, after a drone strike claimed by Ukraine.
Kyiv has launched drone attacks on Russia for months during Moscow’s almost two-year offensive, and a Ukrainian defense source told AFP Kyiv’s SBU security service had “organized” the attack.
“Last night, the air defense and electronic jamming repelled an attack by drones in the Volgograd region’s Kalachyovsky and Zakanalye districts,” governor Andrei Bocharov said on Telegram.
“A fire started at the Volgograd refinery after one of the downed drones fell,” he said, adding that the fire service had already brought the blaze under control by the start of the morning.
No one was hurt, Bocharov said. Kyiv, which used not to claim such attacks, has changed tactic and now publicly takes responsibility.—AFP
