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Photo from May 2023: The Ukrainian capital's air defense intercepts a Shahed drone in the air.
Photo:
Evgeniy Maloletka/dpa
Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital Kiev and the south of Ukraine with drones during the night. At least one civilian was injured and a gas pipeline and residential buildings in the river and sea port of Mykolaiv were damaged, the Ukrainian military said on Sunday. 40 of 45 Shahed attack drones launched by Russia have been destroyed, the Ukrainian Air Force announced on the messaging app Telegram.
"In Kiev, the air alert lasted almost two hours," said Serhiy Popko, the head of the Kiev military administration, on Telegram. In the capital, which is well equipped with air defense systems thanks to Western help, all drones could have been shot down in time on approach, said Popko. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties or destruction in or near the capital.
The Ukrainian military command in the south of the country said on Telegram that anti-aircraft defenses were deployed for more than five hours. 26 Shahed drones shot down by Russia were destroyed. They had attacked several southern areas, particularly in the Mykolaiv region near the Black Sea.
At least one civilian was injured in the attack in southern Ukraine, the military said. The main target was once again the coastal strip with infrastructure and agro-industrial facilities. Falling debris from a downed drone and the blast wave damaged residential buildings and a gas pipeline in Mykolaiv. Four drones were shot down over the Black Sea port of Odessa.
Mourning in Kharkiv – and restructuring of the armed forces
Meanwhile, a day of mourning was declared for Sunday in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. A total of seven people were killed in Kharkiv on Saturday night when combat drones hit a fuel depot and set numerous residential buildings on fire. A family with three children was also among the dead.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj said in his evening video address that he had decided with the military leadership and the government that experienced "combat commanders of this war" would take on new tasks. This affects six high-ranking military officials.
As deputy chiefs of staff under new military chief Olexsandr Syrskyj, Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyj would assume responsibility for unmanned systems and the development of soldiers' use of drones; Colonel Andriy Lebedenko will focus on technological innovation of army and combat systems.
The new commander of the ground forces will be former Deputy Defense Minister Olexandr Pawliuk. This emerges from a decree published on Sunday.
Zelensky also approved the appointment of three brigadier generals as deputies of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces: Volodymyr Horbatyuk for operations, Oleksiy Shevchenko for logistics and Mykhailo Drapatyi for training.
Löw/dpa/Reuters