KYIV, Ukraine — Multiple attacks across Ukraine, Russian-controlled areas, and Russia have resulted in at least 16 fatalities, officials reported, while the four-decade anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe has sparked renewed concerns about nuclear safety risks during Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Regional leader Oleksandr Hanzha confirmed Sunday that casualties from Russian drone and missile attacks on Dnipro had climbed to nine people.
Moscow-appointed officials reported that a Ukrainian drone attack killed one person in the port city of Sevastopol, located in Russian-controlled Crimea. Russia seized the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 in an action widely condemned as illegal internationally, and has utilized it as a logistical hub throughout the current conflict.
In Ukraine’s Luhansk region, which Russia claims to fully control despite Ukrainian denials, Moscow-installed governor Leonid Pasechnik reported three deaths from an overnight Ukrainian drone attack on a village. This followed two additional fatalities reported in the early morning hours of Saturday.
Ukraine has not responded to either incident, and The Associated Press could not independently confirm these reports.
These recent attacks followed the death of a woman in a Ukrainian drone strike on Russia’s Belgorod border area, according to regional authorities.
Ukraine’s General Staff announced Sunday that Ukrainian forces had targeted an oil refinery in Yaroslavl, located deep within Russian territory. The attack ignited fires at the facility, which annually processes 15 million tons of oil and manufactures gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel for Russian military use. Russian officials have not yet responded to this incident.
Ukraine has created its own long-distance drone technology capable of striking targets up to 1,500 kilometers (900 miles) inside Russia. Recent attacks have focused on Russian oil infrastructure as Moscow seeks to increase exports following temporary sanctions relief from the Trump administration to address supply shortages. Ukrainian officials express concern that Russia will use additional oil revenues to purchase new weapons for intensified attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy used the Chernobyl disaster anniversary to caution that Russian attacks could trigger a repeat of the historic catastrophe.
“Through its war, Russia is once again bringing the world to the brink of a man-made disaster — Russian-Iranian Shaheds regularly fly over the plant, and one of them struck the confinement last year,” he wrote on Facebook.
“The world must not allow this nuclear terrorism to continue, and the best way is to force Russia to stop its reckless attacks,” he said.
International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi shared similar concerns during his Kyiv visit, emphasizing that repairs to the plant’s damaged outer protective barrier must commence immediately. IAEA evaluations indicate that damage from last year’s strike has already undermined a critical safety feature of the structure, he explained, cautioning that prolonged delays could increase risks to the original containment structure below. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development estimates repairs would cost at least 500 million euros ($586 million).
Ukrainian authorities report that a Russian drone damaged the outer shell of the plant’s New Safe Confinement structure in February 2025 — a $2.1 billion arch-shaped covering completed in 2019 over the remnants of Reactor No. 4. Moscow has denied deliberately targeting the facility, instead claiming Ukraine orchestrated the attack.
