The occupiers are significantly increasing the scale of UAV use against the civilian population of the Kherson region.
On April 2, an extremely aggressive wave of Russian drone attacks was recorded targeting residential neighborhoods of Kherson and nearby settlements. Throughout the day, the occupiers deliberately dropped explosives on pedestrians and civilian vehicles. At least 15 residents sustained injuries of varying severity today, including a 16-year-old boy. One man was also killed.
The scale of today’s terror is so extensive that emergency services are operating at the limit of their capacity. The flow of calls has not stopped since early morning, and ambulance teams are physically unable to respond to all requests simultaneously.
This escalation confirms a systematic intensification of attacks: in just the past week alone, over 4,400 drones were recorded, nearly equal to the total number used during the entire month of January 2025.
The worsening trend is also supported by overall statistics: in the first quarter of 2026 alone, the enemy has already deployed 37,510 drones. By comparison, the total for the entire year of 2025 was 97,143 units.
Despite the Ukrainian Defense Forces successfully shooting down or suppressing the vast majority of targets, the steadily increasing density of attacks places a critical strain on existing defense systems.
The situation is further aggravated by the occupiers’ introduction of new technologies, in particular fiber-optic controlled drones, which already account for about 10% of the total number of drones used. As of today, there are no technologies in the world capable of effectively countering this type of drone.
As a result, the growing intensity of attacks is accompanied by an increase in civilian casualties. While in February, drone strikes killed 4 people and injured 61, in March the number rose to 7 killed and 88 wounded.
Targets of Russia’s so-called “drone safari” include elderly people and children, further demonstrating the occupiers’ intent to kill and injure civilians. In addition, Russian forces have increasingly been deliberately targeting civilian vehicles on roads and streets in order to inflict maximum casualties.
Information provided by the Kherson Regional Military Administration
