Shot-Down! Russian Tu-95 Bombers Attack Ukraine; Kiev Says Its Fighter Jets Knocked Out Scores Of Russian Missiles

By
Ashish Dangwal
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Ukraine claims to have shot down seven Russian missiles launched by Tu-95 strategic bombers from a location near the Caspian Sea, said Ukrainian Air Force in a Facebook post. 

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According to the post, Tu-95 strategic bombers used by Russia reportedly launched the missile attack from somewhere near the Caspian Sea at around 5 pm local time on July 2. 

Eight Russian cruise missiles of the Kh-101 (Kh-555) type were reportedly fired toward Ukraine’s western, southern, and central regions. However, Kyiv alleged that Ukraine successfully intercepted seven of the eight missiles.

One missile was shot down by an air force fighter jet, and six were “eliminated” by anti-aircraft missile forces. The air force reported that the eighth missile had hit an anti-aircraft missile complex in the Lviv region.

The military is still evaluating the strike’s casualties and damage. 

Ukraine has not provided additional information, such as the fighter jet that intercepted the Russian missile. Also, the targets of Russian missiles are not known. 

Tupolev Tu-95 (Ту-95) Take Off, Flight and Landing, Russian Air Force
Tupolev Tu-95 (Ту-95) – Russian Air Force

Previously, on July 29, the Ukrainian military asserted that it had downed a Russian Su-25 “frog foot” attack aircraft. On July 5, a video showing Ukraine shooting down six Russian missiles aimed at the city of Dnipro also went viral on social media. 

These are a few of the most recent setbacks in a long line of significant losses Russia endured in Ukraine. In the course of the conflict, Ukraine claimed to have destroyed 174 Russian cruise missiles.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense alleged that the country also eliminated nearly 3,000 other vehicles, 223 aircraft, 15 boats, and 1,768 tanks. 

After months of fighting, Ukrainian troops have forced the Russian military back to the country’s easternmost region. While Russia continues to carry out strikes elsewhere in the country, the fighting on the battlefield is still limited to the eastern part of Ukraine. 

Meanwhile, the head of the UN’s nuclear agency declared that a nuclear power plant that Russia had seized during its invasion of Ukraine was “completely out of control.” 

The Associated Press news agency quoted Rafael Grossi as saying that the Zaporizhzhia plant required an inspection and repairs. Recently, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia of using the plant it had seized in March as a military base to attack Ukrainian forces.

Tu-95MS
A Russian Tu-95MS strategic bomber (Wikimedia Commons)

Russia-Ukraine War

The Donbas region in eastern Ukraine is experiencing a difficult situation, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who also noted that Russia continues to control the area. Kyiv recently imposed a mandatory evacuation of the Donetsk region.

Meanwhile, a large fire that tore through a warehouse owned by Russian e-commerce giant Ozon in the Moscow region, as seen in social media videos, forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 people on July 3.

A massive column of black smoke can be seen rising into the air in the video of the fire at the Ozon warehouse in the Istra district. The largest online retailer in the country, dubbed the Amazon of Russia, is located in this region.

Deliveries are made to all parts of Moscow from the Istra district warehouse. 

The fire caused the building’s roof to collapse partially. According to local emergency services, as of 3 pm local time, there were 11 casualties, and two people were being treated in hospitals.

The incident in Istra, about 25 miles from Moscow, is the most recent in a string of mysterious fires reported in Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began on February 24. 

There have been numerous instances of military structures and ammunition storage facilities catching fire. Although Kyiv has denied involvement, Russia has faulted Ukraine for some incidents.

In May, a massive fire started in the Bogorodsk urban district of the Moscow region at the warehouse of a pro-Kremlin publishing house. The structure housed textbooks and other printed materials.

The “Prosveshchenie” (enlightenment) publishing house, which supported Kremlin and had instructed staff to eliminate “inappropriate” references to Ukraine and its capital from textbooks after Putin’s war started, had a fire at one of its warehouses.

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