The wreckage of the drone is thought to have landed in the Homel region, the source added, and so far, no official public statement has been issued by Belarusian authorities regarding the downing of the drone.
While Russia’s onslaught on Ukraine has continued and escalated in the last few weeks, Russian Shahed-type drones have regularly breached Belarusian airspace as they fly towards Ukrainian cities during attacks.
Russia continued to use Belarus airspace during its deadly drone assault on Ukraine last week, which contributed to over 3,000 aerial weapons being fired on Ukraine, killing at least seven civilians and injuring 20 more over the past 24 hours.
Despite shooting down one of Russia‘s drones this week, Belarus remains one of its closest allies, allowing Moscow to use Belarusian territory for military operations against Ukraine.
This is not the first time the Eastern European country has had to down one of Russia’s drones.
Back in September 2024, Belarus’s military confirmed that a drone had been downed over its territory for the first time since the start of Russia‘s full-scale invasion, and since then, there have been several more incidents of a similar nature reported.
While the country of Belarus continues to be strongly allied with Russia, according to Polskie Radio, Russia is attempting to recruit soldiers from Belarus to fight against Ukraine.
The outlet said that the soldier hopefuls are offered a one-time payment equivalent to 470,000 rubles and up to nearly 6 million rubles for a year of service, which is dependent on the region and tasks performed. The candidates are also required to have good health.