Ukraine drone attack kills 7 in Russian-held territory in new escalation

The Russian-installed head of Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, says a drone hit a bus travelling between Moscow and Simferopol.

At least seven people have been killed after a drone hit a bus in the Russian-controlled Donetsk region of Ukraine, as both sides escalate attacks.

The Russian-installed head of the region, Denis Pushilin, said on the Telegram messaging platform on Wednesday that the bus was travelling between Moscow and Simferopol in Crimea.

“A further 11 people sustained injuries of varying severity, and all are receiving the necessary medical care,” he added.

Russia’s state news agency Tass reported that the Investigative Committee has opened a criminal investigation under the category of “terrorist attack”, according to its spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko.

Meanwhile, the governor of St Petersburg said Ukrainian drones hit infrastructure in several districts, causing damage and wounding several people, as Russian President Vladimir Putin hosts the “Russian Davos” economic forum in the city.

The strikes come a day after a barrage of Russian missiles and drones killed 23 people across Ukraine, as the fighting continues with no clear end in sight.

On Wednesday morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that “important facilities on Russian territory were hit last night”.

“Among them was the Petersburg Oil Terminal. The distance from Ukraine’s state border to this facility of Russia’s oil industry, which serves the war, is about 1,100 kilometers. Purely military targets at the Kronstadt base were also hit,” Zelenskyy said.

“Another target was an enterprise in the Tambov region involved in the production of Russian weapons. The distance from the frontline is almost 600 kilometers.”

Asked about the attack on St Petersburg, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia’s response to the attack will be “systemic” in nature, Russian news agency Ria Novosti reported.

“Overall, I can say that a special military operation is ongoing to prevent such strikes,” Peskov told reporters.

According to Leningrad Governor Alexander Drozdenko, on Wednesday morning, 50 drones had been shot down over the region overnight, and suspected attacks were continuing to be repelled.

Drones also hit the city of Michurinsk in the central Russian Tambov region, Governor Yevgeny Pervyshov said, adding that outbuildings at an industrial facility, an apartment building and a library were damaged.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence reported that overnight, 354 Ukrainian drones were “intercepted and destroyed” over multiple regions.

Reporting from St Petersburg, Al Jazee