Ukraine Unleashes Heavy Drone Strikes  06/26 06:29

   Russian air defenses intercepted 660 Ukrainian drones in a major nighttime 
attack on 12 Russian regions as well as the Russia-held Crimean peninsula, the 
Black Sea and the Azov Sea, Russia's Defense Ministry said Friday.

   (AP) -- Russian air defenses intercepted 660 Ukrainian drones in a major 
nighttime attack on 12 Russian regions as well as the Russia-held Crimean 
peninsula, the Black Sea and the Azov Sea, Russia's Defense Ministry said 
Friday.

   It appeared to be one of the biggest drone attacks on Russia and the 
illegally annexed Crimea since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine more 
than four years ago. The previous biggest Ukrainian attack over the past year 
was 556 drones on May 17.

   In an effort to turn the tables on Russia's grinding war of attrition, 
Ukrainian long-range drones have for months been battering targets, including 
oil production and energy facilities, behind the front line and deep inside 
Russia. The campaign has choked Russian fuel supplies and military deliveries, 
stalling Moscow's efforts on the battlefield, Western officials and analysts 
say, and heaped pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

   Initial damage reports from Russia after the overnight attack provided scant 
information. Russia's Defense Ministry usually doesn't say what was targeted in 
Ukraine's drone attacks, nor does it detail any damage.

   Ukraine's Security Service said it used drones to strike Russian navy ships 
and air defense radars in Kerch, an important port city in Crimea.

   The targets were two reconnaissance and mine-laying ships, the Volga and the 
Vyatka, and the cargo-passenger ferry Petropavlovsk, the agency said, claiming 
that the strikes started a large fire. The claim could not be independently 
verified.

   Successful drone attacks hearten Ukraine

   The major attack came hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy 
said on X that he had ordered "a 40-day influence operation," believed to mean 
an escalation of attacks, aimed at "compelling (Russia) to end the war" after 
U.S. peace efforts over the past year yielded no breakthrough.

   The successful strikes, including hitting targets in Moscow and St. 
Petersburg, have buoyed Ukraine.

   Zelenskyy said he got further promises of foreign support when he attended a 
recent summit of G7 leaders, including from U.S. President Donald Trump, and 
that the promised aid will help Ukraine step up its effort to force Putin to 
the negotiating table.

   A NATO summit next month could be another key moment in beefing up Ukraine's 
military.

   A Russian chemical plant is reportedly hit

   In the Tula region just south of Moscow, a private house was damaged by the 
attack and a woman was wounded, Tula Gov. Dmitry Milyaev said in an online 
statement, as reports of damage caused by the attack began to emerge.

   He also said a power line was damaged and an unspecified industrial facility 
in the city of Novomoskovsk.

   Russian independent online outlet Astra reported that a chemical plant and a 
hydroelectric plant in Novomoskovsk were attacked and caught fire. The 
Associated Press couldn't independently verify the report, and there was no 
official confirmation.

   Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin also reported that 47 Ukrainian drones were 
downed as they flew toward the Russian capital. He did not report any 
casualties or damage.

   Ukraine says 2 civilians were killed in Russian attacks

   Two people were killed and seven others injured in Russian attacks on the 
northeastern Kharkiv region over the previous 24 hours, regional head Oleh 
Syniehubov said Friday.

   Russian forces struck the city of Kharkiv and 16 other settlements across 
the region using guided aerial bombs and drones of various types, Syniehubov 
said.

   Ukraine's defenses overnight stopped 174 of 189 Russian drones, the 
Ukrainian air force said. However, four of seven Iskander-M ballistic missiles 
that were fired got through air defenses and struck various locations, it said.

   Ukrainian officials reported damage to energy facilities, homes and other 
civilian infrastructure in the capital, Kyiv, the southern Odesa and 
Zaporizhzhia regions, and Sumy in the northeast. At least six people were 
wounded, according to authorities.

   No Russian military buildup seen on border with Belarus, Ukraine says

   Russia is expanding several of its military sites deep inside Belarus, but 
there is no buildup of forces near the Ukrainian border, a State Border Guard 
Service spokesman said Friday.

   Russia launched its 2022 invasion of Ukraine from Belarus, which borders 
both countries, and Kyiv has kept a close watch on developments there during 
the war.

   Ukrainian intelligence units have detected no grouping or reinforcement of 
Russian units, equipment or personnel close to the border, spokesman Andrii 
Demchenko said in remarks to Ukrainian television.

   However, Russia has a growing number of training grounds, bases and other 
sites deeper inside the country, according to intelligence units.