Drones Hit Russia's Ilsky Oil Refinery Overnight

The Ilsky oil refinery in southern Russia’s Krasnodar Krai was reportedly struck by drones overnight Friday and Saturday, according to local monitoring channels. Kyiv has not commented on the alleged attack, and local Russian officials confirmed a drone attack but did not specify what was struck.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Monitoring channel ExileNova+ shared photos and footage of the alleged attack shortly after midnight, showing flames roaring in the night sky accompanied by a low hum resembling drone engines. Photos published later by the channel show a massive flame in the distance. Russian independent outlet Astra later claimed to have geolocated the attack, pinpointing it to the Ilsky oil refinery.“ASTRA readers reported that the attack began around midnight. Residents confirmed hearing explosions and air defense systems, as well as a fire at the refinery, in local public groups, but reports of an air raid siren being sounded only appeared two hours later,” Astra wrote.“According to ASTRA’s analysis of eyewitness footage, the fire is at the A.A. Shamar Ilsky Oil Refinery in the village of the same name in the Seversky District, 50 km [31 miles] from Krasnodar,” it added.Krasnodar Krai Governor Veniamin Kondratyev confirmed an attack and said “two businesses” were damaged in the same district without elaboration.“The Seversky District was attacked by a drone. Sadly, there were casualties… Drone debris damaged a residential building. Fires have also been reported at two businesses in the district,” Kondratyev wrote. Other Topics of Interest Zelensky Visits Kyiv Maternity Hospital Struck by Russia as Fresh Attacks Kill 7, Including Israeli Teen Zelensky visited a Kyiv maternity hospital damaged in a Russian ballistic strike as fresh attacks killed seven, including a 14-year-old Israeli teen. Russia’s defense ministry claimed to have downed 645 Ukrainian drones across the country overnight between Friday 8 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin claimed his city shot down 20 incoming drones on Saturday morning.The Ilsky refinery is a major regional supplier with a processing capacity of 6.6 million tons of crude oil per year, and was last attacked on Aug. 8.Astra said the refinery was also attacked on July 10, June 2, Feb. 17, Jan. 1, and at various times since 2023.Ukraine claimed to have shut down 43 percent of Russia’s refining capacity by early July.Kyiv’s 2026 attacks on Russian oil infrastructure have heavily disrupted the country’s refining and export capacity, forcing it to import three times the total volume of seaborne oil products imported in all of 2025 in just August, while overall exports and revenue also reportedly slumped by 7 percent and 8 percent, respectively. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.