Ukraine destroys Russian helicopters in latest airfield drone strikes

Telegraph

6 hours ago

Ukraine destroyed three Russian attack helicopters in its latest blow to Moscow's air power, Kyiv has claimed.
Saturday's pre-dawn strike on the Kirovske base, in occupied Crimea, targeted Russian aircraft, air defence systems and storage facilities for ammunition and drones, according to Ukraine's Security Service.
'Available data indicate the destruction of multi-purpose and attack helicopters Mi-8, Mi-26 and Mi-28, as well as the self-propelled anti-aircraft missile and gun complex Pantsir-S1,' an official told the Associated Press.
The Kyiv Independent reported that secondary explosions were heard at the airfield during the night.
Russia's defence ministry said more than 40 Ukrainian drones were shot down over western Russia and occupied Crimea overnight and into Saturday morning.
Earlier this month, nearly a third of Moscow's strategic bomber fleet was destroyed or damaged in a covert Ukrainian operation using cheaply-made drones that had been smuggled into Russian territory.
On Friday Ukrainian drones also struck four Su-34 fighter jets at the Marinovka airfield in Russia's Volgograd Oblast. Preliminary reports indicated that two of the jets were destroyed.
Despite recent strikes, Ukraine continues to struggle against Russian advances on the battlefield and mounting aerial attacks, as diplomatic efforts to end the war have faltered.
Overnight, Russian drones hit a residential tower in the southern port city of Odesa, killing a married couple and injuring at least 17 others, including three children, Ukrainian officials said. There was no immediate comment from Moscow.
Smaller, short-range drones are used by both sides on the battlefield and in areas close to the roughly 1,000km (620-mile) front line.
Short-range drone attacks have killed at least 395 civilians and injured 2,635 since the war began in February 2022, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported Thursday. It said nearly 90 percent of those strikes were carried out by Russian forces.
More than 13,300 civilians have been killed and over 34,700 have been injured in the war, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a report on June 11.
Also on Saturday, Andrzej Duda, Poland's outgoing president, visited Ukraine and urged Kyiv to be patient during the transition to Karol Nawrocki, his nationalist successor.
Mr Nawrocki won this month's presidential election after a campaign in which he criticised Ukraine and accused Volodymyr Zelensky of 'indecent' behaviour towards allies.
He has pledged continued support for Ukraine's defence against Russia, but has signalled a possible shift in Warsaw's stance by opposing Kyiv's entry into Western alliances such as Nato.
'Please be patient,' Mr Duda told reporters at a press conference with Mr Zelensky. 'The world looks different from behind the presidential desk, slightly different from what it looks like to a candidate in elections.'
Mr Zelensky said he would 'of course' invite Mr Nawrocki to Ukraine after he assumed office.