Ukraine updates: Kyiv says it foiled Russia drone attack

Ukrainian military recruitment officers raided several venues in Kyiv and detained men who were not in compliance with military registration rules.

Officers  were seen at the Palace of Sports in the Ukrainian capital on Friday after a concert by the popular Ukrainian rock group Okean Elzy. Footage aired by Ukrainian media showed officers stationed outside the concert hall intercepting men as they exit, with some men seemingly detained.

Checks were also conducted at the Goodwine shopping center and the Avalon restaurant.

Ukrainian men between the ages of 25 and 60 are eligible for conscription, and men aged 18-60 are not allowed to leave the country.

Ukraine adopted legislation making it easier to enlist new soldiers  in April, after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed the need for fresh recruits.

The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) said at least 208 people were killed and 1,220 injured in Ukraine in September.

That makes it the month with the highest number of civilians casualities (people killed and injured) in 2024, according to the mission.

The report said at least nine children were killed and 76 injured. Also, nearly half (46%) of those killed were older than 60 years.

Attacks using missiles and aerial glide bombs, particularly against the cities of Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia, contributed to the high casualty numbers.

Near the frontline, drone attacks accounted for a large portion of the casualities.

At least 30 attacks damaged or destroyed energy infrastructure, with 25 of the attacks in territory controlled by Ukraine and 5 in territory occupied by Russian forces, the UN said.

Russia's air defenses said they shot down 47 Ukrainian drones overnight.

Russian forces said they destroyed 17 drones in the southeastern Krasnodar region, 16 over the Azov Sea and 12 over the border region of Lursk.

Krasnodar's governor said on messaging platform Telegram that the Ukrainian drone attacks had damaged three homes and set a vehicle on fire.

The attacks come as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy concluded a whirlwind tour of European capitals to shore up more support for his country's fight against Russia.

Russian forces have meanwhile continued to punch through defenses in selected points along the eastern frontline and target Ukraine's energy infrastructure.  

Ukrainian forces have hit a fuel depot in the Russian-occupied Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine, Ukraine's military said.

The attack set the depot on fire.

"This facility was used to store oil and oil products, which were supplied, among other things, for the needs of the Russian army. A fire was detected on the territory of the facility," the Ukrainian General Staff said on messaging platform Telegram.

Russia has captured several frontline villages in eastern Ukraine in recent weeks.

Ukrainian air defenses shot down Russian drones over northeastern, central and southern regions of the country, they said on Saturday.

The Ukrainian air force said many missiles were fired from the Russian border region of Belgorod, without specifying the type of the missiles.

It said at least 24 of the 28 missiles were destroyed in the Sumy, Poltava, Dnipro, Mikolayev and Kherson regions.

rm/rmt (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)