Russia’s Tver region partly evacuated amid Ukrainian attack

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - A partial evacuation of Russia’s Tver region was ordered by the region’s governor early Wednesday amid an overnight Ukrainian drone attack.

“To ensure the safety of residents, the Governor of the Tver Oblast Igor Rudenya decided to partially evacuate the population from the territory where the air defense is operating,” the regional administration said in a statement on the Russian social media platform VKontakte.

It quoted Rudenya as saying in an earlier statement that a fire broke out in the town of Toropets, around 470 kilometers (292 miles) north of the Ukraine border due to debris from the downed Ukrainian drones.

He also said that all emergency services in the region were dispatched to the scene, and the fire is being contained.

No information was given by Rudenya or the regional administration regarding any possible casualties due to the attack.

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed in a separate statement that it downed 54 Ukrainian drones during an overnight attack targeting five regions.

Although the Tver region was not mentioned among them, the statement claimed seven drones were downed over the Smolensk region bordering it from the southwest.

Ukrainian authorities have not yet commented on the incident or responded to Russia's claims.​​​​​​​