Russia strikes Ukrainian drone boat production facilities

The targets were hit with long-range ship-launched missiles, the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement, adding that the drones - essentially unmanned boats loaded with explosives - were used by Ukraine to commit terrorist attacks.

The ministry also noted that the missile strike was successful and that all targets have been destroyed, Sputnik reported.

Last month, Ukrainian forces conducted an attack on the bridge across the Kerch Strait, which links the Crimean Peninsula with Russia's mainland, using such a maritime drone.

Two civilians - a couple - were killed and their teenage daughter was injured in the attack, but the blast failed to deal any serious damage to the bridge itself.

In August, Ukrainian forces also launched an attack using two unmanned boats with explosive payloads against Russian naval vessels in the port of Novorossiysk.

Russian forces destroy three Ukrainian strongpoints, ammunition depot near Urozhainoye

Meanwhile, Battlegroup East forces supported by artillery and aircraft have destroyed three Ukrainian strongpoints and an ammunition depot near Urozhainoye, said Oleg Chekhov, a spokesman for the battlegroup.

"Forward units of the battlegroup East, supported by artillery and aircraft, are inflicting fire damage to the enemy near Urozhainoye. Artillery fire destroyed three strongpoints. A strike by army aircraft destroyed an ammunition depot. The enemy is also suffering losses of personnel and equipment," he said in a post on the Russian Defense Ministry’s Telegram channel, TASS reported.

According to Chekhov, artillery fire destroyed an observation post with nationalists near Ugledar, a temporary base of militants near Uglesborochnaya and an armored fighting vehicle northwest of Priyutnoye.

"Artillery fire hit clusters of Ukrainian troops in the areas of Staromayorskoye and south of Ravnopol. To the west of Staromayorskoye, motorized rifle units destroyed an observation post of the enemy, while several militants surrendered as prisoners. Howitzer artillery fire destroyed a mortar unit north of Nikolskoye," the officer said.

He also noted that aircraft struck clusters of Ukrainian troops and equipment in the areas of Sovkhoz Oktyabr, Staromayorskoye, Urozhaynoye and Makarovka.

Chekhov said that servicemen of the battlegroup show courage and heroism in carrying out combat missions. "The platoon commander at the battlegroup’s tank brigade, Senior Lieutenant Roman Starostenko, was part of the unit that carried out missions to inflict fire damage to enemy targets in one of the spots of the South Donetsk area. In the course of the offensive against the Ukrainian troops' positions, the tank crews under the command of Senior Lieutenant Starostenko managed to detect and destroy two pickup trucks, an automatic grenade launcher, and two foreign-made infantry fighting vehicles and eliminate several dozen nationalists in a short period of time," Chekhov said.