Russia Accused of Striking UN Aid Convoy in Kherson as Ukrainian Drones Hit Russian Oil Refinery

Russia has been accused of striking a United Nations humanitarian convoy in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson. A clearly marked UN vehicle was hit twice by drones while delivering aid, according to the UN. Ukrainian officials said the strikes suggested deliberate targeting because the vehicle was distinctly identified.

“The Russians could not have failed to know which vehicle they were targeting,” Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram. UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher alleged that the strikes on the convoy were possibly a “targeted attack”. Andrea De Domenico, head of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Ukraine, said two UN vehicles were damaged by Russian drone strikes.

Over 200 civilians, mostly older people, remained in the affected area of Kherson at the time of the strikes, the UN agency said. The incidents occurred as Russia launched more than 1,500 drones and dozens of missiles across Ukraine over two consecutive days this week, killing dozens of people, Ukrainian officials said.

“We have Russian documents outlining targets for strikes in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities,” he said. He added that Moscow had been developing the plan for a long time and had become active again after events involving Iran, in an effort to locate and track Ukrainian movements.

After laying roses on the rubble of a Kyiv apartment building where a Russian missile strike killed 24 people, Zelensky said Ukraine would not let Russia go unpunished. “Ukraine will not allow any of the aggressor’s strikes that take the lives of our people to go unpunished,” he said.

He added that retaliatory actions were being approved.

Attacks on Ukrainian Cities A huge fire broke out at an oil refinery in Russia’s central city of Ryazan, some 120 miles southeast of Moscow, after strikes from Ukrainian drones. Russia’s defence ministry claimed on Friday to have downed 355 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions through the night.

Zelensky observed that Ukrainian drone strikes had sparked a large fire on one of Russia’s largest oil refineries. Russia’s overnight attacks across Odesa and Kharkiv damaged key infrastructure and residential buildings, regional authorities said. Several people were injured and received medical treatment.

An attack on power infrastructure left nearly 40 settlements without electricity and cut power to more than 22,000 consumers in Odesa. In Kharkiv, a drone strike damaged subway entrances, an electric transport contact network, a trolleybus, and a public transport stop.

Since the beginning of the war, Russia has targeted key energy, transport, and civilian infrastructure across Ukraine.

The swap occurred yesterday as part of a larger 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange agreed under a Victory Day ceasefire. Released Ukrainian prisoners of war ranged in age from 21 to 62, Zelensky said. “Let’s continue to fight for each and every one who still remains in captivity,” Zelensky said in a post on Telegram.

Ukraine's presidential commissioner for sanctions policy, Vladyslav Vlasyuk, said Russia is launching newly produced missiles almost immediately after production without stockpiling them. Analysis of missile debris from late 2025 and early 2026 supports that assessment.

Kyiv warned that easing sanctions on Russia would increase the threat of missile strikes against Ukraine, especially as Western supplies of Patriot interceptors slow. Sanctions relief could overwhelm Ukrainian air defence systems and raise the likelihood of successful hits, officials said.

The widespread use of military drones by both sides is reducing demand for traditional sniper roles in reconnaissance and targeted killing. Drones offer greater visual range, manoeuvrability, the ability to carry explosives, and instant lethality. Ukrainian special forces sniper Vyacheslav Kovalskiy, who set a world record with a shot from 2.5 miles in late 2023, has not conducted a shooting mission for over a year and a half.

“I used to be the sniper, and everyone was dancing around me. Now the drone pilot, everyone dances around him, including me,” Kovalskiy said. He now assists drone teams by transporting equipment, attaching explosives, and aiding navigation.