Ukraine's air defence downs 52 out of 103 Russian drones, air force says

A drone view shows residential and administrative buildings damaged and destroyed by continued Russian military strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the town of Toretsk, Donetsk region, Ukraine December 19, 2024. Сonsolidated Brigade 'Khyzhak' of the Ukrainian Patrol Police Department/Handout via REUTERS

KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine's air defences downed 52 of the 103 Russian drones launched overnight, the Ukrainian military said on Sunday.

The military said on Telegram that it had lost track of 44 drones, and another had left the territory of Ukraine to Belarus.

The military gave no information on the fate of the remaining drones.

However, they said that in Kherson, Mykolaiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Zhytomyr and Kyiv regions, private businesses and apartment buildings have been damaged by the Russian attack.

"Tentatively, without casualties," the military added.

Local authorities said that debris from one of the downed drones fell on the roof of a multi-storey building in the Kyiv region, causing a fire.

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk, Editing by Louise Heavens)