A Russian drone strike killed three people in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region on Saturday, local officials reported. The victims were identified as drivers for the private courier service Nova Poshta. The strike caused a large fire when the drone hit a "civilian facility," according to Sumy regional head Oleh Hryhorov.
In a separate incident on Friday night, a Russian drone attack hit a shopping center in Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine. Regional head Ivan Fedorov stated that the attack caused a fire covering 500 square meters and resulted in several injuries.
These attacks come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned late Friday that intelligence suggested Russia was preparing missiles for a large-scale attack on Ukraine within the next 48 hours.
Meanwhile, Romania’s defense ministry announced Saturday that its forces "safely shot down" a drone that had breached its airspace in an unpopulated area near the Ukrainian border. Romanian President Nicușor Dan confirmed on Facebook that a Romanian F-16 pilot was responsible for the interception. This marks the second drone interception in Romania within two days, following a similar incident near Padina on Friday.
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Romania and other NATO members have experienced a series of drone incursions originating from both Russia and Ukraine. In June, a Ukrainian maritime drone being used in the conflict exploded at the Black Sea port of Constanta, with three other sea drones exploding outside the port without causing injuries. A month prior to that incident, a Russian drone that had strayed off course during an attack on Ukraine struck an apartment building in eastern Romania, injuring two people.