In the early hours of 24 June, a coordinated Ukrainian drone assault targeted energy infrastructure across Crimea and multiple regions of Russia, temporarily blacking out the port city of Sevastopol and killing two people in the Nizhny Novgorod region, hundreds of kilometres from the front line. Russia’s defence ministry stated that air defence systems intercepted and destroyed 323 unmanned aerial vehicles over 20 federal subjects, including the Moscow region, Krasnodar Krai, and the waters of the Azov and Black Seas. Sevastopol’s Moscow-installed governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, confirmed that 70 drones were downed over the city alone, but falling debris and direct hits on power facilities left the city without electricity, forcing kindergartens to switch to emergency routines and halting trolleybus services.

Moscow framed the attack as evidence of Kyiv’s intent to harm civilians. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the strikes on civilian infrastructure “reveal Ukraine’s Nazi nature,” while Razvozhayev described the operation as “treacherous” and designed to “sow panic.” A retired Russian naval officer, cited in state media, speculated that the drones were launched from the Ukrainian-controlled part of Kherson region, using a sea route to evade detection. Kyiv did not immediately claim responsibility through official channels, but pro-Ukrainian monitoring groups reported multiple hits on the main electrical substation in Sevastopol, the Balaklava thermal power plant, and a power station near Simferopol. Ukraine’s air force separately reported that Russia had launched 101 drones at Ukrainian territory overnight, of which 95 were shot down, underscoring the reciprocal nature of the deep-strike campaign.

The power outage in Sevastopol, home to Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, disrupted daily life for its population of over half a million amid temperatures approaching 30°C. Razvozhayev urged residents to conserve phone batteries for emergency calls and to avoid overloading the grid once electricity was restored. By Wednesday evening, power had been partially reconnected to some districts, but the central Leninsky and Gagarinsky areas were expected to remain without supply until later in the day. Two civilians were injured by shrapnel and blast trauma, and at least seven private houses and several apartment blocks sustained damage from falling debris, with six fires recorded. In Nizhny Novgorod, regional governor Gleb Nikitin reported two fatalities and two hospitalisations after drone debris struck an industrial facility, vehicles, and residential buildings. The attack also temporarily cut power across all districts of the Russian-controlled part of Kherson region, though supply was restored within hours.

The strikes form part of an intensifying cycle of long-range attacks that have become a defining feature of the conflict. Sevastopol has been repeatedly targeted in recent months; in May 2024, debris from an intercepted drone hit the same “Sevastopol” substation, causing serious outages. Since 21 June, authorities in Crimea have suspended retail fuel sales to the public, citing security concerns, and earlier this week they halted admissions to children’s summer camps. Viewed from Western capitals, the escalation coincides with a diplomatic impasse: US-led talks on ending the war remain effectively frozen, with Washington’s attention diverted to military operations against Iran since late February. Analysts in London note that both sides are now systematically seeking to degrade each other’s energy and logistics networks, with no near-term prospect of de-escalation.