Ukrainian Army: We Shot Down 28 Shahed Drones

On Monday, January 4, the Ukrainian army announced that Russia had launched 31 Shahed attack drones and two missiles towards Ukraine the previous night. The Ukrainian Air Force stated on Telegram: "As a result of aerial combat, the Air Force and defense forces of Ukraine destroyed 28 Shahed attack drones in the regions of Odessa, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Donetsk, Kryvyi Rih, and Khmelnytskyi." According to the Ukrainian army's statement, the drones were launched from occupied Crimea towards Ukraine, and the remnants of the downed drones damaged technical facilities at the port of Odessa as well as "an abandoned office building and a warehouse." The Ukrainian army added that a fire occurred in a warehouse in the Kherson region, but no one was injured as a result. The statement also mentioned the downing of two Russian military aircraft near the southern city of Mariupol, which is under Russian occupation, in the Sea of Azov and near occupied Donetsk. On Sunday, military officials from both Russia and Ukraine reported downing each other's fighter jets in various areas along the 1,000-kilometer front line of their 22-month-long war. Reuters noted that it could not independently verify the Ukrainian Air Force's report. Russia had not responded to the Ukrainian army's statement by the time this news was published. Previously, Ukraine had stated that during its 22-month invasion, Russia had launched approximately 7,400 missiles and 3,700 Shahed attack drones at targets in Ukraine. A spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force stated in a televised statement that the country's air defense had managed to shoot down 1,600 missiles and 2,900 drones. The White House recently released a U.S. intelligence finding stating that Russia receives parts needed to produce Shahed attack drones from a factory in the Alabuga special economic zone in the Republic of Tatarstan. Russia has stated that it relies on its own resources for using drones to attack Ukraine. The Islamic Republic has confirmed that it sent its drones to Russia before Moscow's attack on Ukraine.