Ukraine’s military said early Friday that it hit a Russian airfield in the Lipetsk region in an overnight strike that destroyed ammunition warehouses.
“Last night, the Ukrainian Defence Forces attacked the Lipetsk airfield,” Ukraine’s General Staff said, adding that they struck “warehouses with guided aerial bombs and a number of other facilities.”
The overnight attack comes as Ukrainian forces continue to mount a major cross-border incursion into the southwestern Kursk region. The offensive has involved around 1,000 troops and more than two dozen armored vehicles and tanks, according to the Russian military.
Earlier on Friday, Russian state media reported that a fire broke out at the air base in the Lipetsk region, around 280 kilometers (177 miles) from the border with northeastern Ukraine.
Those reports came just hours after Lipetsk region Governor Igor Artamonov announced at 3:00 am local time that the regional capital had “come under a large-scale drone attack,” later adding a power facility was damaged.
Artamonov urged residents to ignore calls on social media to leave the city, only to reverse course less than an hour later.
“To eliminate the consequences of the detonation of explosive objects, a state of emergency has been introduced in the Lipetsk municipal district,” he said in a message at around 4:00 am, listing evacuation orders for four communities on the outskirts of Lipetsk, the regional capital.
“Temporary accommodation points and transport are being prepared,” Artamonov said, adding that at least six people were injured in the attacks.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces shot down 75 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 26 in the Belgorod region which borders Ukraine, 19 over the Lipetsk region, seven over the Kursk region, and 13 over the annexed Crimean peninsula and surrounding Black Sea.
Seven seaborne drones headed for Crimea were also destroyed, it added.
