- Novatek, Russia’s second-largest natural gas producer, announced a pause in operations.
- Authorities reported no casualties but placed the area on high alert.
- The Russian Ministry of Defense reported the downing of four Ukrainian drones.
On Sunday, local officials in Russian-occupied Ukraine reported that shelling at a market on the outskirts of Donetsk had killed at least 25 people. Denis Pushilin, head of the Russian-installed authorities in Donetsk, stated that the strike in the suburb of Tekstilshchik resulted in a further 20 people being injured, including two children. He claimed that the Ukrainian military had fired the shells.
Kyiv has not commented on the event, and The Associated Press could not independently verify the claims. Emergency services are actively working on the scene, as mentioned by Pushilin.
In another incident on the same day, a fire broke out at a chemical transport terminal at Russia’s Ust-Luga port following two explosions, according to regional officials. Local media reported that Ukrainian drones had attacked the port, causing a gas tank to explode. The fire occurred at a site run by Russia’s second-largest natural gas producer, Novatek, 165 kilometers southwest of St. Petersburg. Novatek stated that the fire resulted from “external influence” and announced a pause in operations at the port.
Yuri Zapalatsky, the head of Russia’s Kingisepp district, where the port is based, stated that there were no casualties but that the area had been placed on high alert. News outlet Fontanka reported the detection of two drones flying toward St. Petersburg on Sunday morning, redirected toward the Kingisepp district. The Associated Press could not independently verify these reports.
The Russian Ministry of Defense did not report any drone activity in the Kingisepp area in its daily briefing. Instead, it mentioned the downing of four Ukrainian drones in Russia’s Smolensk region and two more in the Oryol and Tula regions. Russian officials had previously confirmed the downing of a Ukrainian drone on the outskirts of St. Petersburg on Thursday.
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