A major Russian oil refinery was burning Friday after a Ukrainian drone attack, a day after a Russian drone strike killed at least 14 people on a crowded rail platform in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro and six more people died in other attacks.
Gleb Nikitin, governor of Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region, said the region was the target of a “massive drone attack” and that more than 100 drones were destroyed. He said an industrial facility in the Kstovsky District “sustained significant damage.”
What We Know So Far
Kstovo. Sky News said pictures appear to show multiple fires at the Kstovo refinery, one of Russia’s biggest. Nikitin did not name the refinery. He said there were no reports of casualties, but warned of temporary power outages and said damage assessments were underway.
Samara and Bryansk. At least two people died in Russia’s Samara region while responding to fires at industrial sites hit by Ukrainian drones overnight, local authorities said Friday, according to The Moscow Times. A 19 year old was killed in a separate airstrike in the Bryansk region. Samara Gov. Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said Kyiv launched a “record number of drones” and did not say which sites were hit.
The exiled outlet Astra said videos showed the targeted facility was the Rosneft owned Novokuibyshevsk refinery. Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak confirmed that Ukrainian drones targeted three refineries and a gas chemical complex overnight, and said at least one suffered “minor damage.” Russia’s Defense Ministry said it intercepted 1,043 Ukrainian drones across Russia and annexed Crimea between Thursday night and Friday morning.
Dnipro. The state railway Ukrzaliznytsia said a jet powered drone struck a platform at the city’s main station on Thursday while a commuter train was preparing to depart. At least 14 people were killed. Another attack hit a student dormitory in Dnipro and set it ablaze, regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha said, and a day of assaults cut power to 350,000 households in the city. “What goal are they trying to achieve?” said Svitlana Shcherbak, 67, who sheltered underground at the station.
Other cities. Two teenage girls were killed and 23 people, including four children, were wounded in a drone attack on a busy street in Chernihiv. Three people were killed and 32 wounded in strikes on a residential block and private buildings in Kremenchuk, the regional governor said. Russian drones also hit city buses in three attacks in Zaporizhzhia, wounding six. A missile attack just before 11 p.m. killed one person in Kyiv, the city’s military administration said. Warehouses were set ablaze.
What Authorities Are Saying
Ukrainian Prime Minister Sergiy Koretskyi wrote on Telegram that Russia was “deliberately hunting civilians” and that “there is no justification for this terror.” Moscow has denied targeting civilians.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attacks “very cruel” and said they came when everyone expected steps to ease tensions. He said Ukraine had intelligence about Russian preparations for new ballistic missile strikes and was expecting “relevant decisions” on air defense. Reuters said Russia’s strikes have exploited an acute shortage of air defense missiles.
Ukraine’s military said Russian forces suffered 54,400 casualties in October, the most in any single month since the 2022 invasion, and that the total now exceeds 1.5 million. The previous worst month was December 2024, with 48,670, it said. “Each month of the war is becoming increasingly costly for Russia’s armed forces,” it said. Neither side regularly publishes official figures for its own losses.
Differing Accounts
The Kstovo damage is reported cautiously. Sky News called it a refinery “reportedly” burning, and the governor referred only to an “industrial facility.” Novak confirmed the strikes but described at least one hit as minor. Ukraine’s casualty figures for Russia cannot be verified.
Why This Matters
The strikes came after President Donald Trump announced an “energy ceasefire” between Russia and Ukraine earlier this month, which neither side said it had agreed to beforehand. The pause collapsed as Russian forces continued attacking Ukraine’s power grid. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Ukraine had paused refinery attacks under U.S. pressure over high fuel costs ahead of next week’s midterm elections. Zelenskyy reportedly told journalists that Ukrainian forces “tried to be a little more careful,” but were not explicitly told to avoid refineries.
Separately, a six day truce brokered with U.S. help applies only to the southern Kherson region, where a humanitarian mission is underway to bring relief to the Russian held town of Oleshky. Both sides issued near identical statements that mine clearing was complete so aid could enter and residents could leave. That raised cautious hopes for a return to diplomacy.
What Happens Next
New three way talks are expected next month, with Ukrainian officials, including presidential adviser Kyrylo Budanov, urging Kyiv’s partners to pressure Moscow. Ukraine says more Russian ballistic missile strikes may be coming.
Sources: Sky News, The Moscow Times and Reuters
