Russian Airstrike on Sumy Kills Two, Injures Four, Including Children

A Russian airstrike on Sumy in the early hours of Sunday, September 8, killed two people and injured four, including children, according to the Sumy Region Prosecutor's Office.

Sumy lies just across the border from Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukraine launched a surprise offensive on August 6, aimed at creating a “buffer zone” inside Russian territory.

The attack occurred around 4:00 a.m., with Russian troops using weapons prohibited under international law to strike a residential area in Sumy.

A married couple, aged 79 and 77, were killed in their home. Among the four injured were a 2-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy. One house was destroyed, and at least 20 homes and four vehicles were damaged.

The air raid began with explosions heard in Sumy early in the morning. The Ukrainian Air Force had issued warnings of potential drone and guided bomb attacks.

Sunday’s strike came just over a week after a previous deadly attack in Sumy, which left two dead and eight injured. At that time, local authorities urged residents in 183 settlements near the Russian border to evacuate, noting that tens of thousands had already fled the area.

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The head of the Kupiansk military administration said the Russian assaults one day earlier as "very difficult" but said the Russian troops retreated and the situation was again under control.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched four Kh-59 missiles from the Belgorod region and 23 Shahed drones from Kursk and Cape Chaud, targeting Ukraine. Air defenses shot down one missile and 15 drones.

Two drones were lost, likely due to electronic warfare, and three Kh-59 missiles missed their targets because of Ukrainian countermeasures. Air defense systems were active in Odesa, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk regions.

Russian troops launch nightly attacks on Ukraine using kamikaze drones and missiles. What made the overnight assault on September 8 unusual was the violation of Romanian airspace by Russian Shahed drones.

Residents in Romania’s Tulcea and Constanta regions were warned about the potential danger of falling debris via the R0-Alert system, according to the local publication Digi 24.

“These messages are meant to inform residents in Romania’s border areas with Ukraine that Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory are possible, and there is a risk of objects falling within Romania’s borders,” stated representatives of the Tulcea Emergency Situations Inspectorate.

The head of Romania’s Emergency Department confirmed that the alert was issued due to a real threat.

Authorities are currently searching for possible crash sites of Russian drones in Romania, though no drones or debris have been found so far. This incident is not the first time Russian drones have entered Romanian airspace.