The key facts

  • Air defense shot down eight drones over Sterlitamak; the plant is operating normally
  • The expert named four possible launch options, including Russian territory
  • No information about casualties has been received

The attack on Sterlitamak and its consequences

On the morning of October 29, the mayor of Sterlitamak, Emil Shaimardanov, reported that air defense forces had shot down eight Ukrainian drones in the sky over the city. According to him, fragments of the drones fell on the territory of one of the local enterprises and caused minor damage. According to the city head, the plant continues to operate normally; no information about casualties has been received. This is reported by Gazeta.Ru.

Expert names possible launch directions

Military expert, retired colonel Anatoly Matviychuk, in a conversation with Lenta.ru listed four possible options for the launch of the UAVs that attacked the plant. In his opinion, the drones could have been launched from the territory of the Sumy, Chernihiv, or Kharkiv regions. He also suggested that terrorist groups could have launched the UAVs from Russian territory — from abandoned villages, gardening cooperatives, and similar places — for a small fee. Among other options, the expert named long-haul truck drivers who transport drones in freight trucks and launch them from parking lots by opening containers, as well as a launch from the 'gray zone' on the border with Kazakhstan, which, according to him, is controlled by neither Russian nor Kazakh air defense forces.

Context

Separately, Gazeta.Ru recalls that earlier in Bashkiria a girl wanted to carry out a terrorist attack at a plant using a bomb made from components purchased on marketplaces. This story is related to the topic of security at industrial facilities in the region, but not to the October 29 attack. The publications do not provide any official conclusions about the launch site of the drones that attacked Sterlitamak — the listed options remain the expert's assumptions.