Russia claims downing of drones over 2 regions, Belgorod Oblast oil depot allegedly hit

Illustrative purposes only: A military truck with the letter Z, a tactical insignia of Russian troops in Ukraine, rides past a sign that reads

Russia claimed its air defenses shot down three drones over Belgorod Oblast overnight on March 5 and one more over Kursk Oblast, according to the Russian Defense Ministry's Telegram channel.

Earlier in the morning, Roman Starovoit, the governor of Kursk Oblast, claimed a there was shelling of a railway station in the village of Glushkovo. He wrote about "nine strikes," which caused a fire, according to Starovoit's statement.

Starovoit further claimed that power lines were damaged, leaving the railway station and the village of Kulbaki in the region without electricity.

Ukrainian officials did not comment on the claims, which cannot be independently verified.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that the drones allegedly were targeted at unspecified "objects" in Kursk Oblast.

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On the morning of March 5, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Belgorod Oblast's governor, claimed an "emergency" in the Gubkinsky district of the Russian region, writing about an explosion and fire at an infrastructure facility.

Russian Telegram channels claimed that the oil depot had been hit, publishing alleged photos of black smoke rising above the site.

Ukrinform reported, citing an unnamed source in Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR), that the agency is behind an attack on the Belgorodnefteprodukt oil depot in Russia's Belgorod Oblast, which was hit by a Ukrainian drone.

In recent weeks and months, Russian authorities began reporting an increasing number of drone strikes targeting Belgorod, Bryansk, Oryol, and Leningrad oblasts, as well as other regions.

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