Ukraine intercepts 163 of 181 Russian drones

Ukraine's air force reported that Russia launched 181 drones overnight on August 2-3, including various types such as Shahed attack drones, jet-powered variants, Gerbera and Italmas drones, and Parodiya decoys. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, 163 of these drones were intercepted.

The drone attacks are part of an escalation in hostilities between Ukraine and Russia, with both countries carrying out strikes on each other's territory. Ukraine has been using drones to attack targets deep inside Russia, including a major oil refinery and an airfield that houses Russian strategic aviation, according to the BBC World. Russia reported that eight people were killed in the Ukrainian strikes and 635 drones were shot down or intercepted.

The conflict has also seen an increase in drone production, with Ukraine reportedly producing millions of small drones annually. The US Pentagon has acknowledged that its own drone output trails Ukraine's production levels, and has plans to draw on Ukraine's battlefield experience with military drones to close the gap.

Brief written by urgent.news from New Voice of Ukraine, Times of India, TechRadar, BBC World, Free Malaysia Today — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.