THE Russia said today that air defense systems shot down five Ukrainian drones over the western Smolensk region and one over the southern Krasnodar region.

Air defense shot down a Ukrainian drone in the Krasnodar region around 08:00 Greek time, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

At around 09:00 Russia shot down three drones over the Smolensk region and at 10:00 shot down two more over the region, the Defense Ministry said.

Meanwhile, three people were injured and an airport was forced to divert flights due to Ukrainian drone and mortar attacks on Russian territory, a Russian official said.

“This morning, Ukrainian forces attacked the central market district of Chebekino with mortars,” Vychislav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region on the border with Ukraine, said, adding that three people, including a woman, were wounded in the attack. who was injured in the neck by shrapnel.

The governor of Bryansk region, also on the border, for his part announced a mortar attack that caused damage but no injuries.

A Ukrainian drone was shot down in the Krasnodar region, on the Black Sea. Due to this attack, the nearby Sochi airport was forced to temporarily divert some flights to other airports.

The Crimean bridge linking the peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014, was also briefly closed this morning, for an undisclosed reason.