Russian forces unleash hour-long drone barrage on Ukraine's Kharkiv

Russian forces unleashed an hour-long barrage of drones on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second city, late on Wednesday, triggering a number of fires but causing no casualties in the second such attack in the course of the day, the regional governor said.

"In the space of just one hour, the enemy deployed 17 (Iranian-designed) Shahed drones," Oleh Syniehubov wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

"Most of the strikes were in the Kyiv district. Local fires broke out. Fortunately, there were no casualties,"

The same district had come under attack earlier in the day, with officials reporting five people injured.

Kharkiv withstood Russian assaults in the first weeks of Moscow's February 2022 full-scale invasion, but did not fall into Russian hands.

It has since been a regular target of air assaults, often with heavy casualties. The city has been hit by a series of drone strikes in recent days.

Syniehubov also reported a drone strike on the town of Derhachi, northwest of Kharkiv, with one person injured. A strike sparked a fire in Cherkaska Lozova, also outside Kharkiv.