Several Ukrainian drones have targeted civilian infrastructure in Russia's Smolensk region, and at least one drone was intercepted near a nuclear power facility, Governor Vasily Anokhin said on the morning of January 29.
Russia's air defense and electronic warfare systems have intercepted several aircraft during a mass drone attack on civilian facilities across different districts of the Smolensk region, Anokhin said on Telegram.
“According to preliminary information, one of the drones was shot down during an attempt to attack a nuclear power facility,” Anokhin said, without naming the nuclear facility.
Earlier, there were several reports confirming debris falling near the Smolenskaya nuclear power plant.
The governor said there were no reports of casualties or damage.
Russia's Bryansk, Tver and Nizhny Novgorod regions were also hit by coordinated attacks overnight, according to local officials.
Bryansk Governor Aleksandr Bogomaz confirmed that air defense systems had intercepted 26 drones. Tver Region Governor Igor Rudenya reported that at least 14 drones were shot down in the Toropets district, northwest of Moscow. Meanwhile, Nizhny Novgorod Governor Gleb Nikitin said that a Ukrainian drone attack led to a fire at an industrial zone in the city of Kstovo.
In a report released on January 28, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that over the past year, amid the conflict in Ukraine, more than 3,500 drone attacks have targeted energy facilities, including Russia's Kursk nuclear power plant, Ukraine's Zaporizhia nuclear power plant and nearby infrastructure in Energodar, posing a significant risk of radioactive contamination.
