Zaporizhzhia glide bomb attack kills one as Zelenskyy seeks Patriots

Kyiv,UPDATED: Aug 3, 2026 17:56 IST

Russian forces dropped eight glide bombs on residential areas of the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia within 90 minutes on Sunday evening, killing one person and injuring 31 others, regional chief Ivan Fedorov said. The strikes also damaged 22 apartment buildings across four districts of the city. As the attacks continued, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy renewed his appeal for more US-made Patriot air defence systems, saying they were needed to protect people from ballistic missile strikes.

The wider overnight exchange of attacks also continued on both sides. Ukraine's air force said Russia launched 181 long-range strike drones from Sunday to Monday, while Russia's Defence Ministry said its air defences intercepted 131 Ukrainian drones over several regions, as well as Crimea and the Black Sea. Officials on both sides also reported deaths, injuries and damage in separate attacks.

Fedorov said the person killed in Zaporizhzhia was a 71-year-old woman and that those hurt included a 16-year-old girl. Russia has used glide bombs on Ukrainian towns and cities since invading its neighbour. The weapons are Soviet-era bombs fitted with guidance systems and can carry up to 3,000 kilograms of explosives, leaving large craters. Ukraine has no effective countermeasure against them.

Late on Sunday, Zelenskyy made another urgent request to partner countries to send more Patriot systems, saying only Patriot interceptors can reliably stop ballistic missiles. He said on social media, "The world has Patriot missiles. What matters now is for our partners to make the political decision to provide the necessary packages. The United States knows what we need. Europe knows what we need. Anti-ballistic missiles must protect people - not sit in stockpiles." The interceptors are in short supply because of the Iran war.

US President Donald Trump last week appeared to step back from his earlier commitment to give Ukraine a licence to make Patriots itself. On Friday, he said the licensing issue was still under discussion and that he had not made a final decision. Zelenskyy has also suggested an alternative under which Elon Musk would allow Ukraine to use Starlink satellites to target ballistic missile launch sites inside Russia, though officials have not publicly said whether that is being considered.

According to the Ukrainian air force, air defences jammed and intercepted 163 of the 181 Russian drones launched overnight, but 14 caused damage at 13 locations. Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces struck four bulk carriers carrying cargo for the Ukrainian armed forces, including three in the Black Sea and one in the port of Mykolaiv, but gave no further details. Neither side's claims could be independently verified.

Elsewhere, three people were killed and two were wounded in Kyiv's overnight attack on the illegally annexed Crimea, the peninsula's Russian-installed head Sergei Aksyonov said, without giving details. In Russia's Krasnodar region, regional governor Veniamin Kondratyev said three people were killed and 13 were wounded by Ukrainian drone debris in Arkhipo-Osipovka, a small town on the Black Sea coast.

Ukrainian drones also struck another warehouse belonging to Wildberries, Russia's biggest online shopping company, as part of a campaign that has hit more than a dozen of the retailer's distribution hubs and disrupted its business. The company said a Wildberries warehouse in the Vladimir region, east of Moscow, caught fire in the latest attack. Vladimir governor Alexander Avdeyev said three people were injured. Zelenskyy said Ukraine also struck the Saratov oil refinery, the Engels military airfield and other targets inside Russia, including fuel storage tanks at the Lyudinovskaya oil depot in the Kaluga region.

The latest attacks underlined the continuing exchanges between Russia and Ukraine, with Zaporizhzhia hit by glide bombs, fresh drone strikes reported overnight, and both sides claiming damage and casualties in areas far from the front line.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends