Ukraine hits two oil refineries deep in Russian territory

Ukraine hits two oil refineries deep in Russian territory Three people were killed in the municipality of Balakliya, Kharkiv region, during an overnight Russian drone attack, according to the country’s emergency service DSNS. The strike hit residential houses, sparking fires in two buildings. Kharkiv regional head Oleh Synehubov said that two additional people died when drones struck Lozova, and eight others were injured. Later on Thursday, five people were killed in Russian strikes across the central Dnipropetrovsk region, regional officials reported. In the south, the entire city of Kherson lost electricity after a “critical infrastructure facility” was hit overnight, said regional head Oleksandr Prokudin. NetBlocks told BBC Verify it had observed “deep disruption” to connectivity in the Kherson region. Telemetry data showed net connectivity dropping to about 31% at its lowest point overnight. The issue persisted, with connectivity at roughly 69% as of 12:00 GMT. NetBlocks’ head of research Isik Mater noted that connectivity did not fall to zero because residents relied on “generators and backup supplies” in Kherson. In Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa, one person was killed when Russia struck two cargo ships. The Russian military said its forces intercepted or shot down 605 Ukrainian drones overnight across several regions. In its latest operational update, the military said it had targeted Ukraine’s fuel, energy and transport facilities, as well as drone storage sites. Additional reporting by Peter Mwai and Richard Irvine‑Brown, BBC Verify.