Ukraine Shoots Down A Barrage Of Iranian Drones In Dawn Attack

Russia launched 26 Iranian-made Shahed drones against Ukraine overnight Wednesday, but the Ukrainian air force said it downed 21 out of 26 suicide UAVs.

The drones were launched from Russian territory in the north and from the south on the eastern coast of the Azov Sea, Ukraine’s air force said.

Thirteen drones targeted Kyiv, but all were intercepted, the Kyiv City Military Administration said. Some wreckage fell on buildings and caused damage.

“Another massive drone attack on Kyiv,” Ukraine’s defense ministry tweeted. “It is obvious that the Russian military feels confident only when attacking peaceful cities.”

There is no reliable information where the five drones that evaded air defenses hit.

Russia has used hundreds of Iranian kamikaze drones since October to hit Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and to try to overwhelm air defenses during massive missile attacks.

The latest large-scale missile attack took place overnight on May 1, killing more than 30 civilians.

The United States and Europe have been supplying air defense weapons to Ukraine to prevent such Russian attacks and have sharply condemned Iranian supply of drones.

Iran first denied it had sent the weapons to Russia but in November Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian claimed the drones were shipped before the Russian invasion.

Ukraine has become more successful in shooting down the relatively slow flying Iranian drones. On December 5, the military said it had downed 60 of 70 Shahed drones, but it has been requesting more Western air defense systems.