Three Russian military personnel were killed early on Monday by falling wreckage of a Ukrainian drone that was shot down as it was attacking a base in Russia's Saratov region, Russian news agencies reported, citing the Defense Ministry. It was the second attack on the base this month.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
"A Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down at low altitude while approaching the Engels military airfield in the Saratov region," news agencies reported the Russian ministry as saying.
"As a result of the fall of the wreckage of the drone, three Russian servicemen of the technical staff who were at the airfield were fatally wounded."
The base, near the city of Saratov, about 730 km (450 miles) southeast of Moscow and hundreds of kilometers from the front lines in Ukraine, was hit on Dec. 5 in what Russia said was Ukrainian drone attacks on two Russian air bases that day. The twin strikes dealt Russia a major reputational blow and raised questions about why its defenses failed, analysts said, as attention turned to the use of drones in the war between neighbors.
Video: Three killed in second attack on Engels base deep inside Russia
Ukraine has never publicly claimed responsibility for attacks in Russia, but has said, however, that such incidents are "karma" for Russia's invasion. The Russian defense ministry said that aviation equipment was not damaged but according to unofficial Russian and Ukrainian social media reports a number of planes was destroyed.
Reuters was not able to independently verify the reports.
Earlier on Monday, Roman Busargin, the governor of the Saratov region, said that civil infrastructure facilities were not damaged in the incident.
"There is absolutely no threat to residents ... Civil infrastructure facilities were not damaged," Busargin said.
The war on Ukraine did not pause for Christmas despite Russian President Vladimir Putin saying he was open to negotiations, with his forces launching more than 40 rocket attacks on Christmas Day, Ukraine's military said on Monday.
Putin on Sunday again said he was open to negotiations and blamed Ukraine and its Western allies for failing to engage in talks, a stance the United States has previously dismissed as posturing given the relentless Russian attacks.
"We are ready to negotiate with everyone involved about acceptable solutions, but that is up to them – we are not the ones refusing to negotiate, they are," Putin said in an interview on Rossiya 1 state television.
An adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Putin needed to return to reality and acknowledge it was Russia that did not want talks. "Russia single-handedly attacked Ukraine and is killing citizens," the adviser, Mykhailo Podolyak, said on Twitter. "Russia doesn't want negotiations, but tries to avoid responsibility."
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
