Russia says downed 36 Ukrainian drones in Crimea attack

Russia's defence ministry said Friday it repelled a Ukrainian attack over Crimea on the same day, shooting down 36 drones over the annexed peninsula.
Kyiv's attempted "attack using aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation was thwarted", the defence ministry said in a statement on Telegram.
It said its air defence systems "destroyed and intercepted" 36 Ukrainian drones over Crimea, a peninsula that Russia annexed in 2014 and which Kyiv has vowed to reclaim.
Another Ukrainian drone over Russia's western Krasnodar region was destroyed, the ministry added.
Kyiv has struck the Russian-controlled territory throughout the war, launching missiles and drones at Sevastopol, Crimea's largest city, in a bid to suppress Russia's Black Sea naval fleet.
On Thursday, Ukraine said it targeted a Russian command post near the port city in an aerial attack that Moscow said wounded one person.
The latest attacks come against the backdrop of escalating Russian strikes on Ukraine and Ukrainian strikes on Russia and occupied areas.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed in his New Year's address last week to wreak "wrath" against Russian forces in 2024, warning Kyiv had upped domestic weapons production.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin promised to intensify strikes on Ukraine after an unprecedented attack on the Russian city of Belgorod over the weekend, reports BSS