Overnight, a Ukrainian drone strike ignited a blaze at yet another Russian oil terminal, according to officials in Russia’s Krasnodar region. This incident marks the latest in a series of assaults targeting Moscow’s crucial oil infrastructure.
In Novorossiysk, authorities reported that drone debris caused a fire at an oil terminal, injuring two people. The specific facility impacted was not identified by the officials.
Astra, a Russian news source, reported that the Sheskharis oil terminal and depot—serving as the endpoint for Transneft’s key oil pipelines—were hit by Ukrainian drones. Images shared by Astra depicted smoke billowing from the terminal, though these visuals have not been independently verified. Ukraine has yet to issue a statement regarding the attack.
Ukraine has been enhancing its ability to conduct mid- and long-range strikes, utilizing its own developments in drone and missile technology to counter Russia’s ongoing four-year invasion. Strikes on Russian oil facilities, which significantly contribute to funding the conflict, have become an almost daily occurrence.
On another front, the death toll rose to 11 following a Ukrainian drone assault on a college dormitory in Starobilsk, a city under Russian control in Ukraine’s Luhansk region, according to officials appointed by Moscow.
In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the dormitory strike as a “crime” and instructed the military to propose retaliatory measures. He emphasized that no military or law enforcement installations were near the college.
At a U.N. Security Council emergency meeting on the strike, held at the request of Russia, Ukrainian Ambassador Melnyk Andrii denied his Russian counterpart’s accusations of war crimes, calling them a “pure propaganda show” and asserting that the May 22 operations “exclusively targeted the Russian war machine.”
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