Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces carried out a “unique operation” targeting Russia’s naval infrastructure in Novorossiysk, a major Black Sea port located more than 300 kilometers from the front line.

According to Zelensky, the operation involved Palianytsia jet-powered drones, Neptune anti-ship cruise missiles and naval drones. He said Ukrainian forces targeted Russian air-defense positions, piers and port infrastructure.

“The occupation fleet and all the infrastructure supporting it will not be safe as long as Russian aggression continues,” Zelensky said.

The attack also caused civilian casualties, according to Krasnodar Krai Governor Veniamin Kondratyev.

Kondratyev said an 8-year-old boy was killed and eight other people, including a child, were injured.

Falling drone debris reportedly damaged 21 residential buildings and four businesses in Novorossiysk.

Eyewitnesses cited by monitoring channels reported fires in several areas of the port, including the grain terminal, the Sheskharis oil terminal and infrastructure linked to Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

Reuters subsequently reported that the grain terminal was damaged and temporarily suspended operations following the attack.

The Ukrainian operation also reportedly extended to Russian-occupied Crimea, where explosions were heard in several locations.

The Crimean Wind monitoring channel, citing local residents, reported explosions near the Balaklava Thermal Power Plant outside Sevastopol.

Residents in Bakhchysarai also reported multiple explosions, machine-gun fire and drones flying overhead during the night.

The monitoring channel further reported a fire at a military facility in northern Crimea. These reports could not be independently verified.

A large-scale drone attack was also reportedly taking place near the Crimean Bridge, which connects the occupied peninsula with Russia’s Krasnodar Krai.

Ukrainian authorities had not immediately provided an independent assessment of the reported damage in Crimea.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air-defense forces had destroyed 502 Ukrainian drones overnight.

According to the ministry, the drones were intercepted over the Russian regions of Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga, Kursk, Lipetsk and Oryol, as well as Krasnodar Krai, occupied Crimea and the Black Sea.

The reported scale of the attack demonstrates Ukraine’s continued efforts to strike Russian military and strategic infrastructure well beyond the immediate front line.

Novorossiysk has assumed greater importance for Russia’s Black Sea Fleet following repeated Ukrainian attacks on Russian naval assets and military infrastructure in occupied Crimea.

Russia has moved a significant portion of its fleet from Crimea to Novorossiysk in an effort to reduce its exposure to Ukrainian attacks.

The latest operation therefore represents a significant challenge to Moscow’s efforts to use the port as a more secure base for its naval forces.

Although the full extent of the military damage remains unclear and several reports could not be independently verified, the strikes demonstrate the increasingly long-range nature of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the growing vulnerability of strategic infrastructure far from the front line. (ILKHA)