Strikes across regions on 13 March 2024: Sumy, Ryazan and beyond

What did the war look like across Ukraine's and Russia's regions on 13 March 2024? It was a day of strikes in both directions, following a similar pattern on the day before.

Civilians under fire in Sumy

On 13 March 2024, a Russian drone attack on an apartment building in Sumy killed two people and injured at least eight others. It came a day after a Russian missile strike on apartment buildings in Kryvyi Rih, in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, on 12 March, which killed three people and injured at least 36. Residential housing in two Ukrainian regions was hit within 24 hours.

Drones over Russian refineries

On 13 March 2024, Ukraine launched drone strikes in Russia for a second consecutive day. One caused a fire at a Rosneft oil refinery in Ryazan Oblast, and a Ukrainian drone was reportedly shot down near the Kirishi refinery in Leningrad Oblast. On 12 March, Ukraine had launched 25 drones at Russian cities and hit a major oil refinery in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the attacks were an attempt to disrupt the upcoming presidential election. That was his characterisation of the strikes.

Fighting on the border

Also on 12 March, the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Sibir Battalion and the Russian Volunteer Corps entered Belgorod and Kursk oblasts. Russia claimed to have repelled the attacks. The same day, a Russian Aerospace Forces Ilyushin Il-76 military transport plane with 15 people on board crashed in Ivanovo Oblast.

Why the regional picture matters

Taken together, the events of 12 and 13 March 2024 touched oblasts from Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk in Ukraine to Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Leningrad, Belgorod, Kursk and Ivanovo in Russia. Regional communities on both sides of the border were directly affected, whether by strikes on homes or on industrial sites. Ukraine's refinery strikes continued across consecutive days, while Russian attacks on apartment buildings caused casualties in Ukrainian cities.