UKRAINE, KHARKIV, Jan 27 — On January 25, around 4:13 p.m., Russian troops launched the fourth air attack in a day on Kharkiv. Their Molniya drone targeted the city’s Shevchenkivskyi district, injuring three people who received medical assistance on the spot, according to Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov. Gwara Media journalists were at the impact site of the attack.
“I heard a loud explosion, then went outside and saw that everything was shattered. This included damaged cars, one of which, a Renault, was on fire. I cleaned the debris inside and put out the fire. But everyone is alive and well,” said one of the eyewitnesses of the Russian attack, owner of a garage-workshop.
On January 25, Russians attacked Khholodnohirskyi, Kyivskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts of Kharkiv, with the latter being targeted twice. Local authorities say that the attacks damaged an infrastructure facility in the Kholodnohirksyi district, causing a massive fire, and hit a roadway in the residential area of Shevchenkivskyi district during the first strike on it, damaging eight vehicles.
In the Kyivskyi district, the Russian drone strike damaged a government facility’s facade, Gwara Media journalists report.
Russia attacks Kharkiv often because of its proximity to the frontline and the state border and uses various weapons like drones, glide bombs, and missiles to do so.
Earlier, Russian troops used Molniya-1 (“Lightning-1”) drones made from cheap components, aluminum tubes, and plywood in Donetsk Oblast. In November 2024, they started testing these drones in Kharkiv Oblast. Governor Oleh Syniehubov described Molniya construction as “basically junk, but still dangerous” because of its warhead.
Molniya drones, like FPV (first-person view) drones, can transmit video but have a longer flight range and can avoid detection by electronic warfare (EW) devices. Dmytro Chubenko, a spokesperson for the Kharkiv Prosecutor’s Office, called Russian Molnyia attacks “planned terrorism”: “This drone can only [be used] to attack civilians.”
Read also
- “Do not appease evil.” Ukraine’s public figures appeal to world leaders, urge against freezing war, concessions to Russia
- Main photos of Kharkiv in 2024: Russia’s war, people’s perseverance
Cover photo: Police gathering information from eyewitnesses of the Russian drone strike on Kharkiv on January 25, 2025 / Liubov Yemets, Gwara Media
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