Drone attack ignites blaze at energy plant in Russia's Volgograd, governor says

July 31 - A drone attack touched off a fire at an energy facility and warehouses in Russia's Volgograd region on Friday, injuring five, the regional governor, Andrei Bocharov, said, but stopped short of giving details of the facility.

The region is home to a Lukoil-owned oil refinery. Five people are seeking medical help after the attacks, Bocharov added on Telegram.

In the neighbouring southern region of Rostov, a woman was injured after a drone attack in the town of Gukovo, regional governor Yuri Slyusar said on the messaging app.

Ukraine has recently stepped up attacks on Russian logistics hubs, such as those of top online retailer Wildberries, as it keeps up strikes on energy facilities that have triggered a supply crisis across most of Russia.

Wildberries, with a few of its warehouses hit as recently as Thursday, said on Telegram it had paid a second tranche of financial support to nearly 100,000 sellers whose goods were damaged.

Ukraine, with its own cities under constant Russian attack, says its strikes deep inside the neighbour are "long-range sanctions" designed to sap Moscow's war-fighting capacity and force it to end the 4-1/2-year conflict. REUTERS