Ukrainian drones strike Wildberries warehouses to disrupt Russian logistics

Ukrainian drones strike Wildberries warehouses to disrupt Russian logistics

Ukrainian drones have struck warehouses belonging to Russia's biggest online retailer, Wildberries, injuring 15 people and causing significant damage to the company's logistics hubs. The attacks, which targeted warehouses in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk, are the second time Ukraine has targeted the firm's facilities in four days.

According to Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim, the company's logistics centers in the southern cities of Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk were evacuated following the attack. Kim confirmed the attacks on two logistics centers in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk in the Stavropol region, stating that "there are no words to describe all the feelings and emotions caused by the attacks on ordinary people, on our employees, on us, who are simply doing our jobs."

The attacks on Wildberries' facilities are part of Ukraine's strategy to disrupt Russian logistics and supply chains. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine had hit logistics hubs in the Krasnodar and Stavropol regions "involved in providing the Russian army with drone components, navigation equipment and other gear". Zelensky also stated that Ukraine had struck an oil depot, as well as a tanker and four cargo ships of the Russian shadow fleet in the waters of the Sea of Azov and Black Sea.

The Russian shadow fleet has been operating to evade international sanctions imposed on Russia's oil exports after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The overnight strikes mark the second targeting of Wildberries' facilities in less than a week, with warehouses in Tambov and Elektrostal hit on Saturday, killing eight people.

Footage of the warehouses, verified by BBC Verify, shows fires in the aftermath of the attacks. Video from Krasnodar captures an enormous column of black smoke rising from the structure as flames leap upwards. Nevinnomyssk footage shows people milling around outside as fireballs erupt in smoke streaming from the building.

Ukraine accuses the Kremlin-linked retail giant of supplying Putin's military machine. Wildberries is owned by Putin-backing Tatyana Kim, Russia's richest woman with a significant fortune.

The situation in Ukraine remains volatile, with ongoing fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces. The Ukrainian governor of the Kharkiv region, Oleh Syniehubov, said that over the past 24 hours, 15 settlements had been subjected to Russian attacks, killing three people and injuring 11 others, including two children.

In a significant development, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has replaced the country's Commander-in-Chief, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, with modernizing Maj-Gen. Mykhailo Drapatyi.