(KYIV) – A large fire has broken out at a Wildberries warehouse in Yekaterinburg, Russia, approximately 2,000 kilometres from the front line, following an overnight Ukrainian drone strike. This marks at least the 20th such facility hit since the start of Ukraine’s targeted operation against Russian logistics sites.
Russian authorities confirmed there were no casualties and said all staff had been evacuated. Footage showed flames causing extensive damage to the site. Three drones crashed onto the roof, according to Russian officials. The Federal Air Transport Agency imposed temporary flight restrictions at the local airport.
Russia’s defence ministry claimed it shot down a total of 203 drones overnight. The strike on the Wildberries site forms part of a broader pattern of Ukrainian attacks on logistics infrastructure deep inside Russian territory.
The Kyiv Independent reported that at least nine people were killed and 89 injured across several Ukrainian oblasts in the past 24 hours. Dnipropetrovsk Oblast came under nearly 80 attacks. Russia reportedly launched 147 Shahed type drones overnight, with Ukraine’s air force saying it shot down 114 of them. Multiple fatalities and wounded were reported in Kharkiv and Donetsk oblasts, with further wounded reported in Zaporizhzhia and Sumy oblasts.
There has been a noticeable increase in the intensity of Russian attacks over the past two months, particularly in recent weeks. The shortage of Patriot interceptor missiles has left Ukraine with a roughly 15 percent shoot down rate for ballistic missiles, with only 30 out of almost 200 projectiles intercepted over the past several months. Air raid warnings now offer as little as five seconds’ notice instead of five minutes.
The strikes come as the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s war continues to exact a heavy toll on civilian life. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has continued to backtrack on promised Patriot blueprints. Speaking at a conference, Trump argued that military aid had completely depleted US stockpiles and that rebuilding America’s arsenal must take priority.
Asked about increased threats to civilians, Trump said the US was “separated by an ocean” and dismissed having a role to play. He claimed 25,000 young people die every month in the war, a figure he did not substantiate. He also remarked that he had “settled eight wars” and thought this conflict “would be maybe one of the easier ones and it turned out to be the most difficult.”
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