Early in the morning on Wednesday, Nov. 20, the Armed Forces of Ukraine targeted the 13th Arsenal of the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Russian Defense Ministry in Kotovo, Novgorod region, according to reports from the Astra and CHEKA-OGPU Telegram channels.
Videos shared on these platforms show explosions and gunfire, with one local resident suggesting the attack involved drones. Residents in the area claim a military unit was the primary target.
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Following the attack, local authorities evacuated residents to Kotovo. Officials from the Kotovsky rural settlement confirmed the evacuation but did not provide further details, stating that investigations were ongoing.
Novgorod region governor Andrey Nikitin reported via Telegram that air defense systems had intercepted several drones overnight. He confirmed there were no injuries or fatalities.
Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed its forces downed 44 drones across nine regions, with 20 reportedly intercepted over the Novgorod region.
During the same night, a separate drone attack reportedly targeted an oil depot in the village of Sosnovka, Samara region, according to CHEKA-OGPU.
These events follow a Nov.19 strike in the Bryansk region, where Ukraine reportedly used long-range ATACMS missiles to hit the 67th arsenal of the Main Directorate of the Missile and Artillery Directorate of Russia, located near the town of Karachev.
ISW Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, December, 21, 2024
The attack also damaged eight residential buildings and the local ventilation plant "VESA," according to Astra.
Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, confirmed the strike had been carried out without indicating which weapons had been used while adding that this storage site had previously been targeted by Ukrainian drones.
At the same time, Russia's state-run TASS agency, citing Russia's Defense Ministry, reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a strike on a facility in the Bryansk region using six ATACMS ballistic missiles.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday, Nov. 20, that Ukraine's use of long-range ATACMS missiles against its territory marked a "new phase of the Western war" against Moscow and vowed to react "accordingly."
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