Latest news with #Iranian-designed
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Russia condemns Israeli strikes on Iran, defends own war
The Kremlin has criticized Israel's recent airstrikes on Iran, insisting the conflict is not comparable to Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine. 'The outbreak of the conflict, actually, and the Israeli attacks on Iran were absolutely not provoked,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state news agency TASS on Thursday. By contrast, he said, the background to the 'special military operation' - as Moscow calls its invasion of Ukraine - is 'well known to everyone.' Israel has defend its strikes on Iran with the need to stop the Tehran's nuclear weapons programme. The Israeli government sees the programme as a direct threat to its country. Russia, meanwhile, has justified its invasion of Ukraine by citing security concerns, including NATO expansion and the alleged oppression of Russian-speaking minorities. The attack on February 24, 2022 took place without warning - just a few days earlier, the Kremlin had publicly denied having any invasion plans. Iran is one of Russia's closest allies in the Middle East and uses Iranian-designed drones in its war on Ukraine. (DPA)
Mint
2 days ago
- Politics
- Mint
Gaming the air raids in Kyiv: A night in a capital at war
KYIV, Ukraine—It is a balmy Monday evening here, filled with the honeyed scent of linden trees, the bustle of outdoor cafes and no outward hint of the deadly war that has raged for more than three years. Then comes a warning from social-media channels: A couple of Russian attack drones are closing in. A couple. Not enough to alter my dinner plans but the start of a gamble Kyiv residents like me take every night: How long can we cling to the normal stuff of life before Russia's steady drone-and-missile barrages drive us underground in search of shelter? Russia's latest tactic to wear down Ukrainian resistance is stockpiling munitions for a few days and launching them in a single night to overload air defenses. The biggest threat comes from Iranian-designed Shahed attack drones, each capable of destroying several floors of an apartment building. The longer the sky is quiet, the more tense the conversations in Kyiv's coffee shops and stores about when the next air raid will be. During my meal, my phone lies unlocked so I can keep a wary eye on drone status notifications appearing on my screen at shorter and shorter intervals. Sirens start to wail across the city at 9:06 p.m. as I take a walk after dinner, indicating the first few drones have entered Kyiv's airspace. Kyivans carry on unperturbed. I head home to get some sleep before the assault's crescendo. At my apartment, I begin my nightly checks. The bathtub, a safe place away from the windows and behind an interior wall, is padded with a blanket and pillows—a touch of comfort after I fell asleep there once and woke with a sore neck. I put my electronic devices on to charge and check my go-bag: water, granola bars, a medical kit with two tourniquets, a flashlight, a power bank and some sweaters. Warm sweatpants and socks for the musty underground shelter are folded by my bedside. The monitoring channels tell me the drones are far away enough for me to sleep before the first bombardment. I turn the volume on my phone to maximum to avoid missing an air-raid alert and set alarms for every 20 minutes to wake up and check on the status of the assault. As I doze off, at 10:17 p.m., another warning on Telegram: Russian war planes are preparing to take off in the next two hours. I go back to sleep. The next update is at 10:31 p.m.: There are up to 100 drones in Ukrainian airspace. I try to squeeze in another 20 minutes of fitful rest as I listen for the telltale buzz, which earned the drones the nickname 'mopeds" among Ukrainians. Just after midnight, I hear one. The buzzing grows closer. I lurch toward the bathtub and strain to hear the sound of the drone speeding up, a sign it is plunging toward its target. But the hum remains constant. It is flying past. I check my phone. More are on their way. It is time to go to the air-raid shelter. The usual crowd stands at the entrance, a covered stairway near the side of a building. They are smoking, chatting and checking their phones, ready to scurry back down at the first sound of trouble. 'They are already buzzing, huh?" one woman sitting in her usual spot by the entryway asks. 'When we got here, it was still quiet." Many people in Ukraine use parking garages or basements for shelter, but this one was built for the task in 1978 during the Cold War. A tattered map on the wall illustrates the potential spread of radiation in case of a nuclear strike. There is wireless internet and beds fashioned from stacks of blank forms for a census that was never carried out. People arrive with their pets, including a green parrot inside a ventilated backpack and a pooch with a dyed purple tail called Lolita. The regulars greet one another warmly. A group of elderly women save a seat for an older man with an ornate mustache who reads updates from his tablet. His back hurts today. I offer him my chair. The cold underground turns into a kind of living room housing a couple of dozen people. A blond woman is already sleeping under a blanket with her spaniel beside her, the dog's graying muzzle peeking out. The boy with the parrot eats sandwiches with his friend as their parents scroll through their phones. A young man plays Candy Crush. Someone snores. The same updates ping throughout the shelter. Each corner has someone reading from their phone in hushed tones. It is past 12:30 a.m. and there are a few dozen drones in the air, and Russian warplanes carrying cruise missiles have taken off. By 2 a.m. we will know whether they have launched their munitions. Each update comes with a mental calculation of how long the bombs will take to arrive and the morbid question of what and whom they will target. 'Balistyka?" people blurt out as walls vibrate. 'Was that a ballistic missile?" Each explosion, even when it is an interception by Ukrainian air defense, shakes the shelter. Those who were asleep are alert now. Ballistic missiles can only be countered with U.S.-designed Patriots, which Ukraine has in short supply. The shock wave from one makes the body shudder. 'A strike in Solomyanka," a working-class district in Kyiv, the man with the mustache says. 'Ambulances were called," I read out loud from my phone to the neighboring women. We are left to guess the extent of the damage. It is illegal for Ukrainians to post images of strikes and air-defense systems firing, because Russia is known for hunting down air defenders and carrying out so-called double-tap attacks—striking the same place twice to kill first responders, journalists and civilians who arrive at the scene. The woman with the spaniel sits up and scans her phone. She asks nobody in particular: How many missiles can a Russian Tu-160 strategic bomber carry? 'Between six and 12," I say. 'Oh God," she responds. By 2:15 a.m., most of the shelter is awake, sharing grim updates about areas of the city that have been hit. 'O bozhe," the woman next to me whispers repeatedly, 'Oh God." Another wave of drones comes an hour later, but some people begin to head home during a period of quiet. 'Is it the end?" says a woman in a white winter jacket. She started coming to the shelter after getting caught near a ballistic strike. She was OK, but she trembles every time she hears the air-raid sirens blare. 'No, people are just tired," her friend responds. 'People have to work tomorrow," says the woman in the white jacket. 'Today," her friend corrects her. Both women stay put. By 4.30 a.m., the cold is creeping through my two sweaters and I can't keep my eyes open. The desire to sleep wins out over fear and I head home, despite the 15 attack drones still in the air. When I emerge from the shelter, it is nearly dawn. The sky is filled with the sound of birds greeting the rising sun. For an hour, I try to sleep between the machine-gun fire and explosions as Ukrainians battle against the final wave of drones and missiles. A glance at photos starting to circulate online shows the damage from the strikes. A student dormitory is hollowed out, missing windows. The midsection of a nine-story apartment building has been bombed to the ground by the ballistic missile we heard. I can also smell it. Fires blaze across the capital. The smell of smoke fills the air. Authorities advise residents to close their windows and avoid the outdoors. A collective grief descends over the city. Streets bustling the night before fall into a shellshocked whisper. Survivors post condolences online to those who didn't. People in the streets yawn, their eyes distant and tired. 'Was it loud where you were?" Kyivans ask one another by way of a greeting. The toll of those who didn't share our shelter or our luck that night is stark: 28 killed and more than 140 wounded.
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Drone debris found in Ukraine indicates Russia is using new technology from Iran
Inside, there were no markings or labels consistent with Russian-made drones. Instead, the stickers followed a 'standard Iran labeling system,' Beskrestnov said. Experts who spoke to AP said the labels are not conclusive proof but the English-language words are consistent with how Iran marks its drones. It is quite possible, they said, that it was sold by Iran to Russia to test in combat. Moscow has pummeled Ukraine almost nightly with Iranian-designed drones throughout the course of the war, now in its fourth year. They swarm above Ukrainian cities, their moped-like sound filling the air, as air defenses and sharpshooters take aim. While some carry warheads, many are decoys. Advertisement Russia is improving its drone technology and tactics, striking Ukraine with increasing success. But the U.K's Defense Ministry said Israel's strikes on Iran will 'likely negatively impact the future provision of Iranian military equipment to Russia,' since Tehran had supplied 'significant quantities' of attack drones to Moscow. Israeli attacks on Iran Israel's military would not comment on what it struck. Although it has carried out sweeping attacks across Iranian military facilities and the U.S. bombed nuclear sites, the impact on Iran's drone industry is not yet clear. Advertisement The anti-jammer in the latest drone discovered in Ukraine contained new Iranian technology, suggested Beskrestnov. Other components in Russia's drones often come from Russia, China and the West. Although Russia's drones are based on an Iranian design, the majority are now made in Russia. And because much of the technology to make them, including the Iranian software and technical expertise, has already been transferred to Russia, the immediate impact on Moscow's drone program could be limited, experts said. However, if Israel struck facilities producing drones and components — such as engines and anti-jamming units — which are shipped to Russia, then Moscow could face supply shortages, experts suggested. A secretive Russian factory Moscow makes its Shahed — meaning 'witness' in Farsi — drones based on an Iranian model in a highly secure factory in central Russia. The Alabuga plant in the Tatarstan region took delivery of its first Iranian drones in 2022 after Russia and Iran signed a $1.7 billion deal. It later established its own production lines, churning out thousands of them. The upgrades identified from debris in Ukraine are the latest in a series of innovations that began with Russia buying drones directly from Iran in the fall of 2022, according to leaked documents from Alabuga previously reported on by AP. In early 2023, Iran shipped about 600 disassembled drones to be reassembled in Russia before production was localized. In 2024, the design was adapted. Specialists added cameras to some drones and implemented a plan, revealed in an AP investigation, dubbed Operation False Target — creating decoys to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses. Advertisement Alabuga also modified the Shahed to make it more lethal, creating a thermobaric drone which sucks out all the oxygen in its path — potentially collapsing lungs, crushing eyeballs and causing brain damage. The size of the warhead was also upgraded. Jet-propelled drones and AI In at least one case, Iran shipped a jet-powered Shahed that Russia 'experimented' with in Ukraine, said Fabian Hinz, an expert on Russian and Iranian drones at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. Ukraine's air force found two more examples of jet-powered Shaheds in May but it appears they have not been widely adopted. That's possibly because the Iranian design uses a very sophisticated jet engine that also powers Iran's cruise missiles, Hinz said. That likely makes it too expensive to use nightly in Ukraine, he said, even if the engine is swapped to a cheaper Chinese model. The electronics in the drone most recently found in Ukraine are also very expensive, Beskrestnov said, pointing to its AI computing platform, camera and radio link. It's unclear why it was deployed but Beskrestnov suggested it could be used to target 'critical infrastructure,' including electrical transmission towers. Previous versions of the Shahed drone could not hit a moving object or change their flight path once launched. They sometimes ended up 'traveling in circles all through Ukraine before they finally hit a target,' which made them easier to shoot down, said David Albright of the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security. The radio link means an operator can communicate with the drone from Russia, introduce a new target and potentially control many drones at the same time, the experts said. The remotely operable Shahed has similarities to drones Russia is already using on the front lines and is particularly resistant to jamming, Beskrestnov said. Advertisement There are eight, rather than four, antennas on the drone which means it is harder for Ukraine to overwhelm it with electronic warfare, he said. The new drone has markings that suggest the anti-jamming unit was made in Iran within the past year and similarities to Iranian components found in older models of the Shahed, said Beskrestnov. Such advanced antennas, said Hinz, have not previously been seen on drones used in Ukraine but have been found on Iranian missiles destined for Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. In a statement, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense told AP in the past four months it had found drones with eight and 12 antennas made in China and Russia. Despite sanctions, both Russia and Iran have continued to find ways to procure Western technology. The drone's AI computing platform can help it autonomously navigate if communications are jammed. Similar technology was used by Ukraine to attack aircraft deep inside Russia during Operation Spiderweb, when it used drones to target Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers. Changing tactics Russia is improving its technology at the same time as it is also changing its tactics. Moscow is flying the Shahed drones at high altitudes where they are out of reach of Ukrainian shooters, as well as lower down to avoid radio detection. It is also carrying out massive group attacks on cities including where drones sometimes dive-bomb a target, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense said. The drones can be used to clear a path for cruise missiles or to exhaust Ukrainian air defenses by sending a wave of decoys followed by one or two with a warhead. Advertisement The tactics appear to be working. AP collected almost a year's worth of Russian drone strike data on Ukraine posted online by the Ukrainian air force. An analysis shows that Russia significantly ramped up its attacks after U.S. President Donald Trump was inaugurated in January. And Russian hits have increased markedly since March — shortly before reports emerged that Russia was using Shahed drones with advanced jammers. In November 2022, only around 6% of drones hit a discernible target but, by June, that reached about 16%. On some nights, almost 50% of drones got through Ukraine's air defenses. Ukraine's Ministry of Defense said the Shaheds' effectiveness is likely because Russia is firing more drones, including decoys, as well as the change in technology and tactics. But although Russia appears to have had increasing success striking Ukraine, it is not clear if that will continue. Israel's strikes on Iran will 'certainly' hurt Russia long-term, Albright said. Moscow, he said, is 'not going to be able to get as much assistance from Iran as it has been.' Associated Press journalists Lydia Doye in London, Volodymyr Yurchuk and Illia Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this report.
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Zelensky says Ukraine developing interceptor drones to counter Russian attacks
An apartment damaged by a Russian drone attack in the Ukrainian city of Odesa on June 20. PHOTO: AFP KYIV - President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 20 that Ukraine was working on the rapid development of interceptor drones to counter the swarms of Russian drones that have been descending on Ukrainian cities in increasing numbers in recent weeks. Ukrainian officials have noted the sharply increased numbers of Iranian-designed Shahed drones deployed by Russian drones in the course of a single night and say it is vital to develop technology capable of tackling the threat they pose. 'We are also working separately on interceptor drones, which are intended to enhance protection against Shahed drones,' Mr Zelensky said, in his nightly video address. 'Several of our domestic enterprises – and, accordingly, different types of drones – are delivering results. Production volumes of interceptors are already increasing.' Russian forces have been deploying more than 400 drones on a single night, with more than 470 fired on more than one occasion. A total of 440 drones – plus 32 missiles – were deployed this week in a 'combined' attack on Kyiv that flattened part of an apartment building and killed 28 people. 'Drone air defence will help us use our means in a rational fashion. We cannot constantly use scarce air and anti-aircraft guided missiles and aviation itself to hunt enemy drones,' Air Force spokesperson Yuri Ihnat told Ukrainian media this week. 'The enemy is deploying more and more Shaheds and we are therefore looking for different methods to counter them.' Mr Zelensky and other officials have pointed to domestic drone production as a key element in national defence, and production has increased dramatically from being virtually non-existent before the Russian invasion of February 2022. The president told foreign arms manufacturers in November 2024 that Ukraine could produce four million drones annually and was quickly ramping up its production of other weapons. Ukraine has also been deploying drones against a variety of targets in Russia, mainly industrial and military. In a major operation at the beginning of June, Ukrainian drones attacked strategic bomber aircraft at different Russian airfields. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Express Tribune
4 days ago
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Russian barrage kills 10 in Kyiv
Russia fired dozens of drones and missiles at Ukraine on Monday, ripping open a housing bloc in Kyiv, killing 10 civilians and burying others beneath the rubble. A flurry of diplomatic efforts to end the three-year-long war have stalled, with the last direct meeting between Kyiv and Moscow coming almost three weeks ago and no follow-up talks scheduled. The Russian army said it had used precision weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles to strike Ukrainian military facilities. "All the designated targets were destroyed," it claimed. Prosecutors in Kyiv said nine people were killed in the capital's Shevchenkivsky district, including an 11-year-old girl. Another person was killed in Bila Tserkva just outside the capital, officials said. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia had launched 352 unmanned aerial vehicles -- including Iranian-designed drones -- and 16 missiles at Ukraine, adding that some of the munitions were provided by North Korea.
