Over the past night and morning of March 13, various regions of Russia have again come under massive drone attacks. According to initial reports, the main targets of this attack were Russian oil refineries.
This was also confirmed by BBC sources in law enforcement agencies. They noted that the enterprises attacked at night are among the top 5 refineries in Russia.
Last night, Russian refineries were also attacked by drones.
Judging by the videos and photos published on various Telegram channels, the Ryazan refinery, which caught fire, was the most affected. The governor of the Ryazan region, Pavel Malkov, confirmed the impact and fire at the refinery.
“According to preliminary information, there are victims,” the Russian governor reported on the Telegram channel and noted that he is currently at the scene.
The Russian state news agency TASS reported that two men were taken to a hospital in Ryazan with moderate injuries.
Meanwhile, the Telegram channel 112, which is close to Russian law enforcement, is reporting three drones attacking the refinery. The channel posted footage showing a drone falling onto the facility, which is already on fire.
In the same video, gunfire can also be heard, and a voiceover suggests that they are trying to shoot down a drone. It then falls and an explosion is heard.
Leningrad Region Governor Oleksandr Drozdenko reported the downing of an “aircraft-type” drone near a refinery in the Kyryshsky district. But, he said, “the consequences at the crash site are localized,” and there were no casualties or damage.
A blow to economic potential?
BBC sources in law enforcement agencies say that last night the SBU attacked three oil refineries with drones - not only in Ryazan and Kirishi in the Leningrad region, but also in the Nizhny Novgorod region.
They confirm that these attacks are a continuation of a series of special operations on enemy refineries that the SBU previously launched.
"We are systematically implementing a carefully calculated strategy to reduce the economic potential of the Russian Federation. Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of oil money and fuel that Russia directs directly to war and the murder of our citizens," the source adds, noting that the attacked enterprises are among the top five Russian refineries.
In addition to Russian refineries, the targets of this drone attack were the Russian Air Force airbase in Buturlinivka and the military airfield in Voronezh.
Dozens of drones?
The total number of drones that attacked Russia this night and morning has not been announced, but the Russian Defense Ministry reports that 58 drones were destroyed over various regions of Russia.
In particular, the report mentions 11 UAVs in Belgorod, 8 in Bryansk, 29 in Voronezh, 8 in Kursk, and one each in Leningrad and Ryazan regions.
At the same time, only in the Ryazan region were there more explosions than the officially announced number of downed drones, and the governor of the Voronezh region, Alexander Gusev, reported the downing of more than 30 drones, which is more than according to the information of the Ministry of Defense.
“According to operational data from the places where the remains of the downed objects fell, there is minor damage to infrastructure and housing in a number of municipalities,” the Voronezh governor reported.
And in Belgorod, according to local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, one of two drones hit an apartment building. But despite the windows and damaged roof, there were no injuries. The second drone, he said, fell into a river. However, TASS previously reported an attack on the FSB building in Belgorod.
The governor of Bryansk Oblast, Oleksandr Bogomaz, reported the downed drones over the region. According to him, “there are no casualties from the destruction.”.
Can't hit the same target twice?
The day before, the authorities of nine Russian regions reported drone strikes. The governors of Oryol and Nizhny Novgorod regions confirmed that drone strikes had caused fires at fuel and energy enterprises.
On the morning of March 12, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that during the night, Russian air defenses had “destroyed and intercepted” 25 Ukrainian “aircraft-type” drones. And by daybreak, it had already named the figure of over a hundred drones.
By March 12, at least six major Russian fuel industry enterprises had been attacked by drones.
