Russia launched an aerial attack against Ukraine overnight on 7-8 March 2025, firing ballistic missiles and sending waves of one-way attack drones from multiple locations. The attack killed three civilians in Bohodukhiv, Kharkiv Oblast, and injured seven others.
The Ukrainian Air Force says the air assault began at 20:00 on 7 March when Russian forces fired two Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles and one Iskander-K cruise missile from Rostov Oblast, Russia. Ukrainian air defenders reportedly shot down the Iskander-K.
The report does not disclose, what were the targets of Russian missiles, but Donetsk Oblast authorities reported yesterday that at least one missile targeted Dobropillia, killing at least 11 civilians:
Russian combined attack on Donetsk’s Dobropillia kills 11, injures 30 including children
Additionally, the Air Force says, the Russians launched 145 Shahed one-way attack drones and various types of decoy drones from several locations including Millerovo, Kursk, Shatalovo, Bryansk, and Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Russia, as well as Chauda in occupied Crimea.
Ukrainian air defense units reportedly shot down 79 Shaheds in 12 oblasts, while 54 more decoy drones were lost from radar without negative consequences. This suggests that at least 12 drones and two missiles might have reached their intended targets.
The report says Donetsk, Poltava, Kharkiv, Sumy, and Odesa oblasts suffered damage from the attack.
Three killed in drone strike on meat processing plant in Kharkiv Oblast
Three men were killed, seven other civilians injured when Russian drones struck a meat processing plant in Bogoduhiv, Kharkiv Oblast, in the early hours of 8 March.
Oleh Syniehubov, head of Kharkiv Oblast Military Administration, reported that Russian forces hit a civilian enterprise in Bogoduhiv with a drone around 02:00. Initially, one person was confirmed dead, with the charred body recovered from under the rubble, and seven others injured. Later, Syniehubov reported that the death toll had risen to three civilians.
The Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor’s Office provided additional details, stating that four Russian drones struck the meat processing plant between 01:35 and 02:55, triggering a large-scale fire. Preliminary information indicates that the three deceased men were working in the same workshop. Additionally, six men suffered injuries, and one woman experienced acute stress reaction. All victims were employees of the enterprise.
Industrial facilities and gas station targeted in Odesa
Russian forces attacked Odesa with strike drones late on 7 March, targeting civilian and energy infrastructure, according to Oleh Kiper, head of Odesa Oblast Military Administration.
Falling debris caused fires at an industrial building and a gas station, Kiper said.
The State Emergency Service later reported that the strike caused major fires at a hangar containing agricultural equipment, a service station building, an auto parts store, solar panels stacked in an open area, and a four-story industrial building.
Factory damaged in Zaporizhzhia
Russian forces attacked Zaporizhzhia with drones overnight on 8 March, causing a fire at a private enterprise, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The flames engulfed a welding workshop and auxiliary structures.
Ivan Fedorov, head of Zaporizhzhia Oblast Military Administration, said there were no casualties.
Police destroy unexploded drone munition in Sumy oblast
Bomb technicians in Sumy Oblast destroyed a munition attached to a Russian drone that had not exploded upon impact, the regional police reported on 8 March.
According to the police, a local resident discovered a Russian fixed-wing drone on a road near a settlement. In another settlement, authorities found a Russian quadcopter with an attached munition that had not exploded when it fell. Due to the particular danger of the find, bomb technicians destroyed it at the site where it was discovered.
Related:
- Russian combined attack on Donetsk’s Dobropillia kills 11, injures 30 including children
- ISW: Halting US intel sharing to weaken Ukraine’s defense against Russian airstrikes
- Ukraine’s air force uses Mirage fighters against Russian missiles for the first time
- Russian missile destroys hotel, kills two, while US aid pause threatens Ukraine’s air defenses
- Russian invaders jail female 56-year-old Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant’s employee for 15 years
- Death toll from Russia’s nighttime air attack rises to five
- Russian attack on Odesa kills 73-year-old man, damages 20 private houses in oblast
