As They Swam in the Black Sea, the Drone Struck

A summer day on a Russian Black Sea beach ended in chaos on Monday when a drone slammed into the crowded shoreline, killing seven people, including three children, according to regional officials. Authorities in the Krasnodar region said 58 people were injured, with 21 of them hospitalized, after the blast near the village of Arkhipo-Osipovka, a popular domestic vacation spot, per the AP. Video verified by the BBC and shown by AFP shows the drone plunging toward a cliff before erupting in a fireball as swimmers look on.

Krasnodar's governor accused Ukraine of intentionally striking civilians. Kyiv hasn't commented, though both sides generally insist they don't target noncombatants. The Independent notes, however, that "Russia has repeatedly struck civilian targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities since its invasion in 2022." What the drone was aiming for remains unclear. Russian media cited witnesses who reported gunfire before the explosion, suggesting air defenses tried to shoot it down, while some Ukrainian channels claimed electronic jamming sent it off course.