During the last night and morning of March 13, various regions of Russia were once again subjected to a massive drone attack. According to previous reports, the main targets of this attack were Russian oil refineries.
This was also confirmed by BBC sources in the law enforcement agencies. They drew attention to the fact that the enterprises attacked at night are among the top 5 refineries of Russia.
Last night, Russian oil refineries were also attacked by drones.
Judging by the videos and photos published by various Telegram channels, the oil refinery in Ryazan, where the fire broke out, was the most affected. The governor of the Ryazan region, Pavlo Malkov, confirmed the attack and the fire at the refinery.
"According to preliminary information, there are victims," the Russian governor said on the Telegram channel and noted that he is currently at the scene of the incident.
The Russian state news agency TASS reported that two men were taken to a hospital in Ryazan with moderate injuries.
At the same time, Telegram channel 112, which is close to Russian law enforcement agencies, writes about three drones that attacked the refinery. The channel published footage showing the drone falling on the enterprise, which is already on fire.
In the same video, gunfire can also be heard, and a voiceover suggests that it is an attempt to shoot down a drone. After that, he falls, and an explosion is heard.
The governor of the Leningrad region, Oleksandr Drozdenko, reported the downing of an "aircraft-type" drone near the oil refinery in the Kyrysh district. But, according to him, "the consequences at the place of the fall are localized", there are no victims or destruction.
A blow to the economic potential?
Sources of the BBC in the law enforcement agencies say that tonight the SBU attacked three oil refineries with drones at once - not only in Ryazan and Kyrysh of the Leningrad region, but also in the Nizhny Novgorod region.
They confirm that these attacks are a continuation of a series of special operations against enemy oil refineries, which were previously launched by the SBU.
"We are systematically implementing a detailed 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, which Russia sends directly to the war, to the murders 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 base in Buturlinivka and the military airfield in Voronezh.
Dozens of drones?
Currently, the total number of drones that attacked Russia this night and in the morning is not known. But the Russian Ministry of Defense reports that 58 drones have been destroyed over various regions of Russia.
In particular, the message refers to 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 there were more explosions than the officially announced number of downed drones, and the governor of the Voronezh region Oleksandr Husev 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 remnants of downed objects fell, there is minor damage to infrastructure and housing in a number of municipalities," the Voronezh governor said.
And in Belgorod, according to local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, one of the two drones hit an apartment building. But despite the damaged windows and roof, there were no casualties. According to him, the second drone fell into the river. However, earlier TASS reported on the attack on the FSB building in Belgorod.
Oleksandr Bogomaz informed the governor of the Bryansk region about 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 immediately reported the strikes of unmanned aerial vehicles. At the same time, the governors of the Oryol and Nizhny Novgorod regions confirmed that the fires at the enterprises of the fuel and energy complex started as a result of drone strikes.
On the morning of March 12, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced that during the night Russian air defense "destroyed and intercepted" 25 Ukrainian "aircraft-type" drones. And in the afternoon, the number of more than a hundred drones was already called.
By March 12, at least six major Russian fuel industry enterprises had been attacked by drones.
