Ukrainian Drone Spots Russian Troops, Launches Rocket in Fiery Attack in Zaporizhzhya

This week, a Ukrainian drone successfully targeted a Russian military training facility in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, an area under Russian occupation in southern Ukraine. "As the Ukrainian drone spotted the Russian troops, a 660-pound rocket, reportedly packed with hundreds of grenade-sized submunitions, attacked them," according to Ukraine's Southern Defense Forces.

The strike, which occurred on October 15, came as around 24 Russian soldiers were present at the facility. While the Ukrainian military did not disclose casualty numbers, a video shared on Facebook showed the drone footage capturing an initial explosion followed by multiple blasts at the site. Reports suggest that this was part of a broader campaign, marking the seventh attack on Russian forces stationed along the 700-mile front line since February.

Ukraine claims to have killed approximately 6.7 lakh Russian troops since the war began in 2022. The Ukrainian Defense Forces also announced that they have destroyed 144 Russian artillery brigades, worth around $8 billion, this year alone.

Earlier today, regional authorities reported that Ukraine launched a series of drone strikes aimed at Moscow and other parts of western Russia. "Russia's air-defence units destroyed at least one drone flying towards Moscow," said Sergei Sobyanin, the mayor of the Russian capital, adding that no damage or casualties were reported in the Ramensky district where debris fell.

Drone debris also ignited several small fires in the Lipetsk region, though no injuries were reported, according to the region's governor. Similarly, officials from the Bryansk and Oryol regions confirmed the destruction of several drones by Russian air-defense units.

Ukraine has consistently stated that its air attacks target infrastructure critical to Russia's war efforts and are carried out in response to Moscow's continued aerial bombardments. However, Russian officials often refrain from disclosing the full extent of the damage, especially to military, transport, and energy infrastructure.