UKRAINIAN FORCES DOWNS SWARM OF IRANIAN-MADE DRONES OVER CAPITAL

Emergency services and police officers examine parts of a drone at the site of a building destroyed by a Russian drone attack in Kyiv on December 14.

Wed 14 December 2022:

Three explosions have been heard in the heart of Kiev as Ukraine claims to have shot down several Shahed drones built in Iran.

“The terrorists started this morning with 13 Shaheds,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, referring to the Iran-made weapons.

“According to the preliminary information, all 13 were shot down by our Ukrainian air defence systems.”

He added that residents of the capital, which has now been subjected to nearly ten months of air raid sirens and frequent aerial attacks since Russia invaded the country in February, should stay alert to government warnings of incoming attacks.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said there were explosions in the central Shevchenkivskyi district and two administrative buildings were damaged, but mentioned no casualties. The all clear was issued after three hours.

No energy facilities were damaged, according to national power grid operator Ukrenergo.

Since a series of key battlefield setbacks this summer and autumn, Russia has been pummelling critical infrastructure across Ukraine with missiles and drones, plunging millions into cold and darkness in winter.

Moscow last week also targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure, piling pressure on the country’s power grid, whose operators have for weeks been forced to implement rolling blackouts.

Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat said the attack was deliberately timed for when it was dark to make it harder to shoot the drones down, but that Ukrainian air defence systems had been effective.

He said the total number of Iranian drones launched on Wednesday was being verified but that Russia had used about 400 since the first was shot down by Ukraine in mid-September.

It was unclear whether Russia was using a new batch of Iranian drones or had not yet used up its old stock, he added.

U.S. ambassador in Ukraine Bridget Brink said following the morning attacks that Kyiv could continue to rely on Washington’s backing.

“More support is on the way,” she wrote on Twitter.

Reports on Tuesday said the United States was finalising plans to send its sophisticated Patriot air defence system to Ukraine.

According to officials, the US plan would be to send one Patriot battery. A truck-mounted Patriot battery includes up to eight launchers, each of which can hold four missiles.

The entire system, which includes a phased array radar, a control station, computers and generators, typically requires about 90 soldiers to operate and maintain. However, only three soldiers are needed to actually fire it, according to the US Army.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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