On September 11, regional authorities in Russia reported that Murmansk Oblast, located behind the Arctic Circle, was targeted in a drone attack. This led to temporary flight restrictions being put in place.
Murmansk Oblast is situated about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) away from Ukraine and shares borders with Finland and Norway. It is home to the Olenya Airbase, where Russian strategic bombers used in attacks against Ukraine are stationed, as well as the Severomorsk naval base of the Russian Northern Fleet.
According to the regional governor, Andrey Chibis, who shared the information on his Telegram channel at 2:10 p.m. local time, three drones were shot down over Murmansk Oblast. As a precaution, the airports in Murmansk and Apatity were temporarily closed.
At this time, there is no information available on any potential damage or casualties. Reports of drone sightings in Murmansk Oblast near Severomorsk were first shared on Russian Telegram channels earlier on September 11. However, these claims have not been independently verified and Ukraine has not commented on them.
It is worth noting that Ukraine has previously carried out drone attacks against Russian infrastructure facilities and military installations during the ongoing war. These attacks are aimed at weakening Russian invasion forces in Ukraine.
In July, the Ukrainian military intelligence agency (HUR) claimed that two Russian Tu-22M3 bombers were damaged in an attack on the Olenya airbase.
Read More @ kyivindependent.com