Ukrainian drones spark explosions and fires in Russia's industrial city of Lipetsk

Overnight on Oct. 22, Ukrainian drones entered the airspace above Lipetsk, a city of roughly 500,000 people located 335 km east of the Ukrainian border. Video footage showed the drones flying low while explosions lit up the night sky, and the monitoring channel ExileNova+ confirmed the strikes. Lipetsk Regional Governor Igor Artamonov reported damage to the windows and facades of multiple residential blocks and to a clinic that was closed at the time.

The attacks also reached the area around the Novolipetsk Steel Plant, Russia’s largest steel producer, which accounts for about 20% of the nation’s crude steel output. This raid follows previous drone assaults on the plant and the city’s combined heat and power station in July. Kyiv has been stepping up attacks on Russian facilities that support its military, after Moscow escalated air raids on Ukrainian civilian and energy infrastructure.