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🔴 Live: ‘Almost 15’ drones downed over Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials
Almost 15 drones were downed during an overnight attack on Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said early on Thursday, in the second strike on the capital in as many days. Follow our liveblog for the latest developments. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
Issued on: 03/08/2023 – 06:05
Modified: 03/08/2023 – 10:39
3 min
A maintenance worker stands outside a damaged government building in Kyiv, Ukraine following Russian drone attacks on Wednesday August 2, 2023,
A maintenance worker stands outside a damaged government building in Kyiv, Ukraine following Russian drone attacks on Wednesday August 2, 2023, © Jae C. Hong, AP
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FRANCE 24
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FRANCE 24
10:30am: Ukrainian pilots to begin training on F-16 jets ‘this month’
“This month the training of our Ukrainian pilots will begin”, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a speech to heads of Ukrainian diplomatic missions, referring to the F-16 fighter jets.
“Now we need to work one hundred percent with the countries that have these aircraft and will be able to transfer them to us after training”, the Ukrainian leader added, according to the verbatim posted on the presidency website on August 2.
10:10am: Russia adds Norway to list of countries ‘unfriendly’ to its diplomats
Russia has added Norway to its list of foreign states that have committed so-called “unfriendly” acts against Russian diplomatic missions.
Countries on the list are limited in the number of local staff they can hire in Russia, with Norway restricted to 27, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti said.
Norway expelled 15 Russian diplomats for alleged spying in April, and Russia responded by ordering out 10 Norwegian diplomats.
9:35am: On board the navy patrol boats scanning the skies for Russian drones
FRANCE 24’s Ukraine correspondent Gulliver Cragg boarded one of the military patrol boats active on the Dnipro River in Kyiv.
“Russian-launched Shahed kamikaze drones often fly low along the river when they’re attempting to attack the Ukrainian capital, so these riverboat patrols are an important part of Ukrainain air defences”, he explained.
Watch his TV report by clicking on the player below:
01:44
© France 24
9:15am: Russia shoots down drones less than 200 km from Moscow
Russia says it has downed six drones in the Kaluga region, less than 200 kilometres from Moscow, amid a surge in such attacks targeting the capital city.
“This night, six drones trying to cross the Kaluga region, were shot down with anti-air defence systems,” said regional governor Vyacheslav Shapsha said on Telegram.
There were no casualties, he said.
6:00am: ‘Almost 15’ drones downed over Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials
Almost 15 drones were downed during an overnight attack on Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said early on Thursday, in the second strike on the capital in as many days.
Air defence forces “detected and destroyed almost 15 air targets”, said Sergiy Popko, head of the Kyiv city military administration, without specifying who launched the attack.
Early information indicated no damage or casualties, he said.
Popko said the attackers had used a barrage of Shahed drones, in an onslaught that lasted three hours.
Russia has used Iranian-made Shaheds to attack Ukraine multiple times since invading its neighbour in February 2022.
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The city’s military administration had earlier issued an alert for air attacks and warned residents to stay in shelters.
Key developments from Wednesday, August 2:
Russian drones attacked port and grain storage facilities in the south of Ukraine’s coastal Odesa region in the early hours of Wednesday, including the inland port of Izmail across the Danube River from Romania, in a fresh blow to the country’s critical grain exports.
Kyiv’s military administration said the city’s air defences downed more than 10 Russian drones during an overnight attack.
Read yesterday’s liveblog to see how the day’s events unfolded.
© France Médias Monde graphic studio
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
