Ukrainian Army: We Shot Down 14 Iranian-Made Shahed Drones

On Monday, February 12, the Ukrainian army announced that Russia targeted Ukraine with 17 drones and an unspecified number of guided missiles during nighttime attacks, and Ukraine's defense managed to shoot down 14 Iranian-made Shahed drones and one missile. The interception of these weapons occurred in several regions of Ukraine, including Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Dnipro, Petrovsk, and Zaporizhia. The governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region reported a fire at energy facilities in the region due to the drone attacks from Russia. There are no reports of casualties. Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's Minister of Digital Transformation, stated that the country is planning to produce thousands of long-range drones capable of operating deep within Russian territory this year. President Volodymyr Zelensky also highlighted the improvement of air defense systems and electronic warfare as key priorities for the coming year in his evening speech on Sunday, February 11. Both sides have intensified their air attacks in recent months, targeting each other's energy, military, and transportation infrastructure. On the other hand, Russia on Monday denied the use of the Starlink satellite system in parts of Ukraine. This denial came a day after Ukraine's military intelligence announced that previous reports confirming the use of Starlink by Russian forces for battlefield communication were accurate. These satellite terminals were sent to Ukraine after the onset of the Russian invasion in 2021, but Russian forces later captured some eastern Ukrainian areas where these terminals were located. Andriy Yusov, spokesperson for Ukraine's Defense Ministry's Main Intelligence Directorate, stated that instances of Russia's use of these devices have been recorded and are forming systematically. Starlink stated on February 8 that its terminals are not active in Russia and that SpaceX has never sold or marketed this service in Russia, nor sent equipment to locations in Russia. In a statement published on the 'X' network, Starlink said: 'If SpaceX becomes aware of unauthorized use of Starlink by a sanctioned party, it will investigate the claim and, if confirmed, will take actions to deactivate the terminal.' Sources: Associated Press, AFP, and Reuters.