The essentials in brief:
- Ukraine uses cardboard drones against Russia
- Russia shoots down unknown object over Pskov region
- Three years in prison for Orthodox war opponents in Russia
Ukraine is said to have attacked the military part of an airport in the Russian border region of Kursk a few days ago with a new type of drone. A total of 16 missiles made of cardboard were used last Sunday, Ukrainian media reported, citing the SBU secret service. Five Russian fighter jets and several air defense systems are said to have been damaged in Kursk.
Kiev received lightweight drones made of cardboard and rubber bands from an Australian company in the spring. The devices are difficult for anti-aircraft radars to locate. In recent days, Ukrainian drones have carried out several successful attacks on targets in Russia, even at great distances from the border.
Russia shoots down unknown object over Pskov
Russian air defense reports the shooting down of an unknown missile in the northwestern Pskov region. Governor Mikhail Wedernikov posted a video on Telegram showing an explosion in the sky. There was no damage to the floor.
In the same region, Russia said it had already thwarted a drone attack on Wednesday over the Pskov military airfield, as a result of which four Russian transport aircraft were damaged.
Moscow mayor: expand air defense
In view of the increasing number of drone attacks on the Russian capital, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has praised the expansion of air defense. A lot has been done to protect Moscow from drones and attempted terrorist attacks, Sobyanin told representatives of municipal companies.
Despite this, unmanned aerial vehicles have penetrated into the city center several times in recent weeks and caused damage, for example in the famous Moskva City skyscraper district. However, the consequences of the attacks are disproportionate to the consequences of the war in Ukraine, which was attacked by Russia.
Three years in prison for Orthodox war opponent
A district court in Saint Petersburg has sentenced an Orthodox cleric to three years in prison. Because he denounced Russia’s war against Ukraine, Ioann Kurmojarov was found guilty of spreading false information about the Russian army. The public prosecutor had even requested seven years in prison.
In March 2022, Kurmojarov condemned Russia’s attack on Ukraine in a YouTube video and said that Russian soldiers who died in the war there would go to hell. He was arrested in June 2022 and has been in custody ever since. In Russia, there have been very few cases of clergy publicly condemning the war against Ukraine.
Many children in Ukraine continue to go without school
Four out of ten school children in Ukraine continue to rely on distance learning. This was announced by the international aid organization Save the Children in Kiev at the start of the new school year. 42 percent of all school-age children have to resort to digital educational offerings because, for example, there is a lack of air raid shelters in schools.
The head of Save the Children in Ukraine, Sonia Khush, spoke of “another year of interrupted education”. Thousands of children have not set foot in a classroom since the war began in spring 2022. In accordance with international law, civilian objects and especially those used by children must be protected from attacks.
rb/wa (AFP, AP, dpa, epd, KNA, Reuters)
This article will be continually updated on the day it is published. Reports from combat zones cannot be independently verified.
Source: DW
