Ukraine downs over 500 Russian targets in massive overnight raid
Ukrainian air defense forces intercepted or electronically suppressed a staggering 507 aerial targets on Monday morning, May 18, following a massive, multi-directional overnight bombardment by the Russian military.
According to data released by the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia deployed a total of 546 aerial attack weapons—consisting of 22 ground-based missiles and 524 strike drones—in a heavily coordinated, combined raid. The sweeping drone swarm included standard Shahed loitering munitions alongside Gerbera and Italmas models, complemented by Parodiya decoy drones designed to exhaust and confuse radar networks. These were launched from multiple Russian sectors, including Kursk, Bryansk, and occupied Crimea, News.Az reports, citing RBC-Ukraine.
While mobile fire groups, anti-aircraft missile units, and electronic warfare teams successfully neutralized 503 drones and four Iskander-K cruise missiles, dozens of ballistic threats breached the defense umbrella. Ukraine struggles significantly with hyper-fast ballistic trajectories; consequently, 14 Iskander-M and S-400 ballistic missiles managed to impact across 34 distinct locations.
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The primary brunt of the assault targeted the industrial city of Dnipro and the surrounding Dnipropetrovsk region, which was hammered by a mix of missiles, drones, and heavy artillery. Regional Governor Oleksandr Ganzha confirmed that at least 26 people were wounded in the area, including a 2-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy, as multiple fires tore through residential neighborhoods.
Simultaneously, the southern port city of Odesa endured what residents described as one of the loudest nights since the invasion began. Falling debris and direct hits damaged a local lycée and a kindergarten, leaving an 11-year-old boy among the injured. Additional strikes and casualties were reported across the Chernihiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, leaving more than 30 civilians wounded nationwide and at least one dead.
This devastating barrage follows a weekend of intense escalation, occurring just 24 hours after Ukraine launched its largest long-range drone offensive of the war against military and energy infrastructure in the Moscow region.
By Aysel Mammadzada
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