After 32-hour Easter truce, Russia launches 98 drones; Ukraine claims 87 intercepted (Photo credit: AP)
Drone strikes between Russia and Ukraine resumed late Monday after a 32-hour Orthodox truce expired, with both sides accusing each other of violations even during the ceasefire period.Ukraine said Russia launched 98 drones overnight, of which 87 were neutralized by its air defense systems. Meanwhile, Russia’s defense ministry said, “on April 13, air defense forces on duty intercepted and destroyed 33 Ukrainian aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles.”According to Moscow, the interceptions took place across multiple regions, including Belgorod, Kursk, Rostov, Bryansk, Smolensk, and the annexed Crimean peninsula.The temporary truce, which began at 4:00 pm (13:00 GMT) on Saturday and lasted until the end of Sunday, April 12, had been announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.While both sides had earlier agreed to observe a ceasefire, the pause in hostilities appeared limited in scope. Ukrainian officials said that “during the declared ceasefire period, no missile strikes, air strikes, or attack drone strikes (of the Shahed/Gerbera type) were recorded.”However, Kyiv accused Russian forces of committing over 10,000 violations during the truce, largely involving frontline clashes, artillery shelling, and FPV drone attacks.In contrast, Russia’s defense ministry alleged that Ukraine breached the ceasefire around 2,000 times.The brief pause in fighting, similar to previous attempts last year, failed to bring a complete halt to hostilities, instead resulting in only a temporary and partial reduction in violence.