One Killed as Ukrainian Drones Strike Russian Refineries in Samara and Bashkortostan

Ukrainian drones struck two oil refineries deep inside Russia overnight, Ukraine's military said on Tuesday, as regional officials reported that at least one person had been killed and 15 injured. The strikes represent the latest phase of Kyiv's campaign against Russian energy infrastructure, part of its wider effort to repel Moscow's unprovoked invasion and degrade the industrial base sustaining the Kremlin's war machine.

Vyacheslav Fedorishchev, governor of the southern Samara region, wrote on Telegram that one person had been killed and four wounded in what he called a "treacherous" Ukrainian strike. He offered no details about the victims and did not say where the attack occurred. The Ukrainian military said it had struck the Rosneft-operated Kuibyshev refinery, southwest of Samara's regional capital — a facility targeted repeatedly throughout Russia's war against its neighbour. Fedorishchev made no mention of the refinery, saying only that "the enemy was targeting industrial enterprises."

Videos and images circulating on social media purportedly showed a large black plume of smoke rising above the Kuibyshev plant early on Tuesday. Ukraine said it had also struck the Rosneft-owned Bashneft-UNPZ refinery in the republic of Bashkortostan, extending its reach deep into Russian territory.

In the southwestern Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, acting governor Alexander Shuvayev said 11 civilians had been injured in drone and artillery attacks over the preceding 24 hours. Russia's defence ministry, meanwhile, claimed to have intercepted 297 Ukrainian drones across Russia and annexed Crimea between Monday night and Tuesday morning — a figure that, if accurate, underscores the scale of Kyiv's long-range campaign.

The human cost was borne on both sides of the frontier. Ukrainian officials reported that at least five people, among them a three-year-old child, had been killed in Russian attacks across multiple regions of Ukraine. The deaths serve as a reminder that while Kyiv's strikes on Russian refineries draw attention for their strategic reach, it is Ukrainian civilians who continue to endure the heaviest burden of Moscow's aggression.

The World House, which maintains a dedicated page outlining its support for Ukraine at worldhouse.uk/support, continues to document the consequences of Russia's brutal campaign and the Ukrainian people's resistance against the invaders.