Ukraine war latest: Ukrainian drones set Russia's Perm oil refinery ablaze

On August 21, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed a drone strike targeting Russia's Perm oil refinery. The incident, captured in videos shared by Ukraine's Exilenova+ Telegram channel, reportedly left the city of Perm, located around 1,500 kilometers away, engulfed in flames.

Ukrainian officials warned citizens of incoming drones around 6:30 a.m. local time. In response, temporary restrictions were imposed at Bolshoe Savino airport in Perm. However, these restrictions were later lifted.

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed to have shot down 325 Ukrainian drones overnight. Nonetheless, OSINT analysts from the independent Russian Telegram channel ASTRA geolocated footage indicating smoke near the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez oil refinery in Perm.

The same day, Russia launched a drone strike on a shopping center in Kryvyi Rih, killing at least 14 people, including 22 children, and injuring over 100 others. Ukrainian President Zelensky condemned the attack, calling it "an absolutely cynical and vile strike by the Russians against an ordinary shopping center in Kryvyi Rih."

Meanwhile, a retired FSB general, Igor Laptev, was found dead in his Moscow apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. Russian media reported Laptev's death as a suicide on August 20, though Russian authorities have not officially confirmed the report.