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Russian nighttime attack: unidentified aircraft caused explosion near Polish border

21 November, 2023 Tuesday
14:37

On the night of November 21, Russia attacked Ukraine’s western regions with Shaheds, and air defense was operating in Khmelnytskyi. Russia also launched missiles at a hospital and a mine in the Donetsk region, killing and injuring civilians

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The Ukrainian Air Force reported the information.

Attack from the south

At 8:12 pm, Russia launched a Shahed attack from the southern direction, posing a threat to Zaporizhzhia and Dnipro regions, as stated by the Ukrainian Air Force. Subsequent movements of the Shaheds were reported from Kherson to Mykolaiv, Odesa, Vinnytsia, and Khmelnytskyi regions.

Attack from the north

At 8:39 pm, Russian drones breached Ukraine's southern border in Kharkiv region, moving north. Concurrently, a group of Shaheds advanced from Kharkiv and Dnipro regions towards Poltava and Sumy regions. Attack UAVs approached Myrhorod in the Poltava region, and another group threatened Chernihiv and Cherkasy regions. Subsequently, the drones targeted Kyiv, and then progressed to Vinnytsia and Zhytomyr regions. 

Western Ukraine under attack

At around 11:30 pm, enemy drones entered the airspace of Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Chernivtsi regions. Later they targeted the Rivne region.

Explosions were heard in the Khmelnytskyi district, and air defense was operating in the region, Serhiy Tyurin, deputy head of the Khmelnytsky Regional Military Administration, wrote on Facebook.

Later, the Khmelnytskyi Regional Military Administration confirmed the operation of air defense forces. They noted that there was no information on casualties, injuries, or damage.

Attack on Volyn region

A Shahed drone was destroyed during the air raid alert in the Volyn region.

"Regarding the night air raid alert in the region: according to the military, a Shahed-type drone was destroyed in the Volyn region. There are no casualties, the situation is under control," said the head of the Regional Military Administration, Yuriy Pohulyayko.

Later, Ihor Palyonka, mayor of the town of Volodymyr (about 30 km from the Polish border), commented on the situation regarding the nighttime explosion near the city.

"Around 2:30 am, at a distance of approximately one and a half kilometers from Volodymyr, an unidentified aircraft was spotted, which caused an explosion. As of 9:00 am, the police and the State Emergency Service are working at the scene to determine what kind of object it is and what damage it caused. It is currently known for certain that there were no human casualties. According to the Volyn Regional Military Administration, the aircraft was shot down by air defense," the mayor emphasized.

Missile attack on the Donetsk region

Also that night, the Russian military launched 4 missile attacks on the Donetsk region.

According to Ukrainian Interior Minister Igor Klymenko, the first two missiles hit the territory of the hospital in the town of Selydove around 11:30 pm. Two buildings of the medical institution were damaged, and 6 civilians were injured. As of the morning of November 21, there may be victims under the rubble, so search operations are ongoing.

A few minutes later, the occupiers launched two more missile attacks on a mine, killing one employee. Four buildings, 19 cars and a power line were also damaged. 39 miners were trapped underground. As of now, all miners have been brought to the surface.

Ukrainian Air Defense Forces shoot down 9 Shaheds and a missile

According to the Air Force of Ukraine, on the night of November 21, Ukrainian air defense shot down 9 out of 10 Shahed attack drones and one Iskander-K cruise missile.

At night, the Russian invaders attacked from the southeast (Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Russia) with 10 Shahed attack UAVs. They also fired 4 S-300 anti-aircraft guided missiles in the Donetsk direction and one Iskander-K cruise missile from the Dzhankoy area in occupied Crimea.

"As a result of combat operations, the Air Force destroyed 9 enemy Shahed-131/136 drones and one Iskander-K cruise missile. Units of mobile fire groups, fighter aircraft, and anti-aircraft missile units were engaged," the statement reads.

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