Kyiv

At least eight people have died after Ukraine launched massive overnight drone attacks across numerous military, energy, and civilian infrastructure sites deep within Russia on Sunday.

According to DW, Russia's Defence Ministry stated that its forces successfully intercepted 635 drones during the assault.

Residential buildings were struck by drones in Engels, located on the left bank of the Volga River, killing two people, while another apartment complex in nearby Saratov City suffered damage.

Local officials reported that three individuals were killed and two injured in the Udmurtia region, located 1,300 kilometres from Ukraine, with an additional three killed and five injured in Belgorod.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that Kyiv targeted a military base housing Russian long-range bombers in Engels alongside an oil refinery in Saratov. Zelenskyy stated that the strikes served as his country's response to Russian aggression, expressing gratitude to Ukrainian forces for taking the war "back to where it came from."

Kyiv reported that fires damaged both locations and that its forces additionally struck an oil depot situated in the western Kaluga region. Unverified videos shared on social media allegedly showed fires blazing at the Saratov oil facility.

Addressing why Ukraine targeted Wildberries warehouses, DW noted that Kyiv struck a logistics warehouse belonging to the online retailer in Samara, which sits more than 800 kilometres away from Ukraine's front-line positions.

Sunday's onslaught on Wildberries formed part of a broader campaign against the retail giant, which Kyiv accuses of aiding Russia's military. Since July 18, Kyiv has targeted nearly a dozen Wildberries warehouses. Although no casualties occurred at the Samara facility, local management confirmed that the resulting fire was brought under control.

While the exact number of drones claimed to have been downed by Russia remains unconfirmed, DW highlighted that the figure reflects the massive scale of Kyiv's efforts to strike deep inside Russian territory while defending itself against an army that initiated a full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.

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Furthermore, DW reported that the Wildberries attacks are viewed as an attempt to bring President Vladimir Putin's war home to Russia's citizens, applying pressure to the country's already anaemic economy with the ultimate hope of ending Moscow's ongoing invasion.