On the night of July 9, an attack by unmanned aerial vehicles was recorded again in the waters of Taganrog Bay. The targets of the strike were two Russian tankers, on board of which fires broke out. Information about the incident was confirmed by the acting governor of the Rostov region, Yury Slyusar.
Course of events and consequences of the attack
According to regional authorities, drone strikes led to fires on both vessels. The tankers sustained mechanical damage, but the threat to the lives of the crews was eliminated — all crew members were evacuated. At the time of the authorities' statement, the fire on one of the tankers had already been extinguished, while the second vessel continues to burn.
Slyusar also reported on large-scale air defense operations in the region: more than 20 drones were shot down over the Rostov region during the night. In the Azov district, a fire broke out after debris from one of the drones fell, which was subsequently contained.
Context: a series of strikes against the "shadow fleet"
The incident on July 9 was a continuation of a series of attacks on maritime infrastructure. On the night of July 8, Ukrainian drones also attacked two tankers in Taganrog Bay. At that time, Russian authorities reported two injured persons, noting that a spill of petroleum products was avoided.
In Kyiv, these actions are viewed as part of a campaign to undermine the logistics of the Russian armed forces. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stated that Ukrainian troops struck six tankers of the so-called "shadow fleet" of the Russian Federation. According to their data, one vessel was destroyed in the Black Sea, and another five in the Sea of Azov. The statement emphasizes that these vessels were used to supply occupation troops in southern Ukraine.
Discrepancies in figures
At the same time, representatives of the Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Forces cited higher figures, claiming strikes against more than nine tankers of Russia's "shadow fleet." Earlier, on July 7, the Telegram channel "Madyar" reported the destruction of two such vessels. Also, on the night of July 7, according to Kyiv sources, Ukrainian drones struck eight fuel tankers, one bulk carrier, and one ferry belonging to the Russian Federation's "shadow fleet".
