Russia on fire after Ukrainian drones strike energy and industrial plants in Smolensk and Lipetsk

Large fires broke out in two regions of Russia after long-range Ukrainian drones struck energy facilities and an industrial zone. Vasily Anokhin, governor of the Smolensk region, said drones had struck ‘civilian fuel and energy facilities’ while videos showed flames and smoke billowing into the night sky. Meanwhile Igor Artamonov, governor of nearby Lipetsk, said Ukrainian drones had struck an industrial zone in the region. He did not say exactly what had been targeted, but Ukraine is in the midst of an air campaign to destroy Russian oil refineries and factories producing weapon components. The idea is to degrade Putin’s ability to continue the war in Ukraine by depriving him of money from oil exports, and weapons for his troops to fight with. The campaign has succeeded in disabling or damaging most of the oil refineries in western Russia. While troops have resorted to using motorbikes and buggies to launch attacks on Ukrainian lines because they are running short of armoured transport and other heavy weapon