Russian drone strikes hit the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa overnight, killing a married couple and wounding at least 17 people, Ukrainian authorities reported Saturday.
Emergency services said a drone slammed into a multi-story residential tower, damaging three floors and trapping residents in the rubble. Among those injured were three children, according to Odesa regional Governor Oleh Kiper.
The attack came as Ukraine continued its own aerial operations against Russian forces. A Ukrainian security official said special drones struck the Kirovske military airfield on Russian-occupied Crimea, destroying several helicopters and an air defense system.
“Available data indicate the destruction of Mi-8, Mi-26, and Mi-28 helicopters, as well as a Pantsir-S1 self-propelled anti-aircraft missile and gun complex,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of security protocols.
Moscow has not issued an official response to either strike. However, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed that its forces shot down over 40 Ukrainian drones overnight and early Saturday over Crimea and western Russian regions.
The war, now entering its fourth year, has increasingly become a proving ground for drone warfare, with both sides racing to field more advanced and lethal systems.
Ukrainian drones have been credited with major attacks deep inside Russian territory. Earlier this month, Ukrainian forces damaged or destroyed nearly a third of Moscow’s strategic bomber fleet using inexpensive, long-range drones launched in covert operations.
Closer to the front line, smaller drones remain a constant threat. The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported Thursday that between February 2022 and April 2025, short-range drone attacks killed at least 395 civilians and injured 2,635. Nearly 90% of those attacks were attributed to Russian forces.
Overall, more than 13,300 civilians have died and over 34,700 have been wounded since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a June 11 report.
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