After a break of several weeks, Russia has probably attacked Ukraine again with Iranian drones.
If reports are verified, it means Russia has received supplies, the UK Defense Ministry said in its daily intelligence report on Friday.
It is likely that Russia had previously used up its previous stock of hundreds of so-called Kamikaze drones of the Shahed-131 and Shahed-136 types.
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In London, reference was made to official Ukrainian reports that 17 drones were shot down on Tuesday, including 14 Shahed-136.
On Wednesday it was said that the Iranian-made drones were used for attacks on the Zaporizhia and Dnipro regions.
The shooting down of drones was last reported in mid-November.
Ukrainian troops defend their positions
According to Ukrainian sources, Russian troops in eastern Ukraine significantly intensified their attacks on Thursday.
The governor of Donetsk region Pavlo Kyrylenko said on TV that the entire front line was under fire there.
The fiercest fighting took place near the towns of Bakhmut and Avdiivka.
Russian troops also appeared to be attempting to advance near the town of Lyman, recaptured from Ukraine in October.
Five civilians were killed and two injured in Thursday's fighting in parts of Donetsk Oblast controlled by Ukraine.
The Russian military recently intensified its attacks in eastern Ukraine after having to withdraw from other parts of the country as a result of the Ukrainian counter-offensives.
The government in Moscow declared on Thursday that it wanted to secure at least most of the annexed areas in eastern and southern Ukraine.
However, Ukrainian troops did not advance, but defended their positions, said Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych.
According to the Ukrainian General Staff, the military has attacked Russian positions and troop assembly points in at least half a dozen cities in southern Ukraine.
Russian losses amounted to about 240 wounded.