KYIV, Ukraine (AP) \u2014 Russian drones struck the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa overnight, killing two people and injuring at least 17, Ukrainian authorities said on Saturday. <\/p>\n
A drone slammed into a residential tower block in the city, causing damage to three floors and trapping residents, emergency services said. The two killed in the attack were a married couple, according to regional Gov. Oleh Kiper, who added that three children were among the injured. <\/p>\n
There was no immediate comment from Moscow. According to Russia\u2019s Defense Ministry, over 40 Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight and on Saturday morning over western Russia and Kremlin-occupied Crimea. <\/p>\n
Long-range drone strikes have been a hallmark of the war, now in its fourth year<\/a>. The race by both sides to develop increasingly sophisticated and deadlier drones has turned the war into a testing ground for new weaponry<\/a>. <\/p>\n Ukrainian drones have pulled off some stunning feats. At the start of June, nearly a third of Moscow\u2019s strategic bomber fleet was destroyed or damaged in a covert Ukrainian operation<\/a> using cheaply made drones sneaked into Russian territory.<\/p>\n Smaller, short-range drones are used by both sides on the battlefield and in areas close to the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line.<\/p>\n The U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said in a report published Thursday that short-range drone attacks killed at least 395 civilians and injured 2,635 between the start of the war in February 2022 and April 2025. Almost 90% of the attacks were by the Russian armed forces, it reported.<\/p>\n More than 13,300 civilians have died and over 34,700 have been injured in the war, the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said a June 11 report. <\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n