Belarus’ Defense Ministry said early Thursday that it destroyed several drones after they violated the country’s airspace overnight.
“Late last night, on September 5, a violation of Belarusian airspace was detected, reportedly involving unmanned aerial vehicles,” the ministry said in a statement posted on Telegram.
“A decision was made to neutralize the threat. Prompt actions by air defense forces resulted in the destruction of all violating targets,” the statement added.
The ministry did not specify how many drones were downed or where they were destroyed, noting only that an investigation was underway.
Unconfirmed reports on social media suggested that Iranian-designed Shahed drones were shot down over the Gomel region, which borders northern Ukraine’s Kyiv region. Russia has extensively used the “kamikaze” Shahed against Ukraine since launching its full-scale invasion.
Videos circulating on social media showed drone debris falling to the ground in what was said to be Belarus’ Gomel region.
The Belarusian war-monitoring group Belaruski Hayun reported that three fighter jets were dispatched to intercept the drones. Debris from the drones reportedly caused a small fire on the ground, which was quickly extinguished.
The Moscow Times could not independently verify these claims.
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