1 killed as Russia, Ukraine trade accusations on overnight airstrikes

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - At least one person was killed as Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday traded accusations regarding overnight airstrikes conducted in their respective countries.

A statement by the Russian Defense Ministry claimed that its air defense systems downed 13 drones over the Kursk region and nine drones over the Belgorod region, both of which border Ukraine.

Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram that a Ukrainian drone struck a moving car in the region’s Grayvoronsky district, killing one person.

Elsewhere, Kursk Governor Alexey Smirnov said five people were wounded in the region due to Ukrainian shelling in the town of Sudzha, about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

Meanwhile, Mykola Oleshchuk, the commander of Ukraine’s air force, claimed on Telegram that four missiles and 15 attack drones launched by Russia over Kyiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Khmelnytskyi regions.

Oleshchuk did not report on the whereabouts of two other Iskander missiles that he claimed were launched by Moscow towards the capital.

“As of this moment, no destruction has been recorded in Kyiv, and no information has been received about victims,” Serhiy Popko, the head of the Kyiv military administration, said on Telegram.

Local authorities in Ukraine’s Kherson, Mykolaiv and Khmelnytskyi regions did not report any casualties or damages due to the overnight airstrikes.