Ukraine Strikes Back: Russian Forces Suffer Major Losses After 117 Kamikaze Drones Obliterate Enemy Air Bases

Ukraine launched a series of powerful kamikaze drone and missile strikes against Russian targets overnight, as President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to push "even deeper" into Russian territory.

In what is reported to be Kyiv's largest drone attack to date, around 117 drones targeted at least nine regions across Russia, including four key airfields.

One of the targeted sites was the Savasleyka military base in Nizhny Novgorod, a strategic location housing hypersonic Kinzhal missiles and MiG-31K aircraft used in the war against Ukraine.

A video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, appears to capture the moment a Ukrainian kamikaze drone struck the aircraft parking lot at Savasleyka airfield.

According to a Ukrainian security source, these drone attacks were designed to diminish Russia's ability to deploy jets that have been launching glide bombs on Ukrainian territory, The Sun reported.

The aftermath of the strikes included reports of at least ten “arrivals” and footage showing explosions and fires at the Borisoglebsk airbase in the Voronezh region, home to the 160th Fighter Aviation Regiment.

In Kursk, a city at the heart of a region where Ukraine is conducting a counteroffensive, missile strikes were reported. While Moscow claimed these missiles were intercepted, Kyiv asserted control over 74 settlements in the area — more territory than Russia has captured in Ukraine during its 2024 offensive.

This development has been described as a significant embarrassment for the Kremlin, with President Joe Biden noting that it is causing a "real dilemma for Putin."

Governor Alexei Smirnov acknowledged that Russian air defenses were actively repelling Ukrainian attacks, claiming that four Ukrainian missiles had been shot down.

However, there were unconfirmed reports of drone strikes on Kurchatov, a town near the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces are reportedly advancing towards this strategic atomic station.

In the neighboring Belgorod region, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov declared a state of emergency, highlighting the growing threat of Ukrainian incursions. He described the situation as "extremely difficult and tense," as Russian air defenses worked to down dozens of drones, although the full extent of Ukrainian successes in the strikes has yet to be assessed.

The Russian defense ministry claimed to have intercepted four Tochka-U tactical missiles and 117 kamikaze drones across multiple regions, describing the strikes as among the heaviest of the entire conflict. In Voronezh alone, 35 drones were reportedly aimed at various targets, with at least one drone hitting a farm and igniting a large fire. Reports also suggested that the Baltimore airfield and Borisoglebsk were targeted.

The strikes extended across several other regions, including Bryansk, Oryol, Rostov, Lipetsk and Volgograd, with Ukrainian drones being shot down in these areas, according to Russian sources. Ukraine's military claimed to have downed a Russian Su-34 fighter jet, valued at $30 million, during operations in the Kursk region.

Ukraine’s General Staff confirmed the successful destruction of the aircraft, emphasizing that efforts to eliminate Russian forces, their equipment, and weapons are ongoing. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces reportedly captured 100 Russian prisoners of war in Kursk, with Ukrainian Commander Oleksandr Syrskyi providing an update to President Zelensky via video link.

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Zelensky stated that Ukrainian troops are continuing to advance in the border region, having made gains of one to two kilometers in multiple directions since Wednesday. He suggested that the capture of Russian servicemen could expedite the return of Ukrainian prisoners of war.

In response to these attacks, Moscow is reportedly withdrawing some of its troops from Ukraine, according to US officials told The Wall Street Journal. The significance of this decision is still being assessed, and the number of troops being pulled back remains unclear.