Ukraine neutralizes all 70 Russian Shaheds in nighttime attack; other strikes kill at least 2, injure 22 civilians
Ukraine's air defenses downed 61 of Russia's Shahed drones, with 9 others crashing. Multiple regions were targeted, including areas near a nuclear plant. Casualties were reported from other attacks in Kharkiv and Kherson oblasts, and infrastructure damage occurred in several areas.
In a massive overnight attack on 20 September, Russian forces launched a massive assault on multiple Ukrainian regions using dozens of explosive drones. Ukraine’s air defenses successfully neutralized 61 out of 70 Shahed drones and shot down a Kh-59 guided missile, according to the Air Force of Ukraine’s Armed Forces. Other Russian attacks killed at least two civilians and injured 22 others, according to local authorities.
The attack targeted numerous oblasts, including Zaporizhzhia, Khmelnytskyi, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Rivne, where explosions were reported by public broadcaster Suspilne. Air alerts were declared in most Ukrainian regions during the night.
Nuclear plant fly-over
Serhii Tiurin, head of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast Military Administration, reported that one of the Shahed drones flew in close proximity to the Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant. Tiurin described this as “nuclear blackmail” by Russia, emphasizing the need for modern air defense systems to protect not only Ukraine but the entire continent from Russian terror.
Damage
The overnight assault resulted in damage to infrastructure and civilian areas in several regions. In Kyiv Oblast, air defenses successfully intercepted multiple targets, preventing damage to residential and critical infrastructure, as reported by Ruslan Kravchenko, head of the Kyiv Oblast Military Administration.
Lviv Oblast also came under attack, with one enemy drone being shot down. The debris caused a fire in a former collective farm building and damaged three vehicles and nearby residential houses, according to Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the Lviv Oblast Military Administration.
In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Russian forces continued to target the Nikopol area with artillery and kamikaze drones, affecting Nikopol, Marhanets, and Chervonohryhorivka communities, as reported by Serhii Lysak, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration.
The Zaporizhzhia Oblast Military Administration reported 288 strikes on 13 settlements in the region, resulting in damage to residential buildings and infrastructure, but no civilian casualties.
Casualties
The drone attack didn’t hurt anyone, but other Russian strikes killed at least two civilians yesterday and last night.
Casualties were reported in several regions. In Kharkiv Oblast, Russian artillery shelling killed an 85-year-old man and injured three more civilians, according to the Kharkiv Oblast Administration. In Kherson Oblast, various Russian attacks injured five civilians on the previous day, with an additional 35-year-old man injured in an overnight attack on the village of Blahovishchenske, as reported by the Kherson Oblast Military Administration.
In Sumy Oblast, multiple Russian KAB guided bomb strikes were reported, with no casualties. However, yesterday’s Russian bomb strike on a geriatric care facility in Sumy City resulted in 13 people injured and one 70-year-old woman killed, according to the Sumy Oblast State Emergency Service.
Related:
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- Lithuania urges NATO to shoot down Russian drones over Baltic states
