At least 16 people have been killed in strikes across Ukraine, Russian-occupied territory, and Russia over the weekend, local authorities reported on Sunday, as the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster prompted renewed warnings about the dangers of attacks near the plant during Russia's more than four-year invasion.
Strikes Across the Region
The death toll from Russian drone and missile strikes on the city of Dnipro rose to nine, according to regional head Oleksandr Hanzha. In Russian-occupied Crimea, Moscow-installed authorities said one man was killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on the port city of Sevastopol. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, a move widely condemned as illegal, and has used the peninsula as a staging and supply hub during the war.
Leonid Pasechnik, the Russia-installed governor in Ukraine's Luhansk region—which Russia claimed full control of earlier this month, a claim denied by Ukraine—reported three people killed in an overnight Ukrainian drone strike on a village, following two deaths in the early hours of Saturday. Ukraine did not comment on these attacks, which could not be independently verified by The Associated Press.
In Russia's Belgorod border region, local authorities said a woman was killed in a Ukrainian drone attack. Ukrainian forces also struck an oil refinery in Yaroslavl, deep inside Russian territory, according to Ukraine's General Staff. The strikes caused fires at the facility, which processes 15 million tons of oil annually and produces gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel for the Russian military. Russia did not immediately respond.
Long-Range Drone Capabilities
Ukraine has developed long-range drones capable of reaching targets up to 1,500 kilometers (900 miles) inside Russia. These have been used recently against Russian oil facilities, as Moscow seeks to boost exports after the Trump administration granted a temporary sanctions waiver to ease supply constraints. Ukrainian officials argue that Russia will use the additional revenue to fund weapons that hit Ukraine harder.
Chernobyl Anniversary Warnings
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy marked the Chernobyl anniversary by warning that Russian attacks risk repeating history. "Through its war, Russia is once again bringing the world to the brink of a man-made disaster—Russian-Iranian Shaheds regularly fly over the plant, and one of them struck the confinement last year," he wrote on Facebook. "The world must not allow this nuclear terrorism to continue, and the best way is to force Russia to stop its reckless attacks."
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, echoed these concerns during a visit to Kyiv, stressing that repairs to the plant's damaged outer protective shell must begin immediately. IAEA assessments indicate that damage from a strike last year has already compromised a key safety function of the structure. Grossi warned that years of inaction could increase danger to the original sarcophagus beneath it. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development estimated repairs would cost at least 500 million euros ($586 million).
Ukrainian officials reported that a Russian drone struck the outer shell of the plant's New Safe Confinement structure—a $2.1 billion arch-like enclosure completed in 2019 over the remains of Reactor No. 4—in February 2025. Moscow denied targeting the plant, alleging that Kyiv staged the attack.
