Russia reportedly used a Molniya drone armed with yellow phosphorus against Ukrainian forces. A video that emerged on social media shows an attack targeting Ukrainian trench positions with incendiary material. The Molniya drones is a cheap mass-produced medium-range drone.

Russia deploys phosphorus-filled Molniya drones over trenches

According to Ukrainian analytical group Vodohrai, Russian forces are using strike drones of the Molniya type equipped with warheads containing yellow phosphorus against Ukrainian troops. According to Militarnyi, Vodohrai received and studied footage from one of the attacks, concluding that the drones have been modified to deliver chemical agents that cause severe harm.

The use of phosphorus compounds in combat can lead to large-scale fires and devastating burn injuries. Yellow phosphorus retains many of the same properties as white phosphorus — it ignites easily and is highly toxic. This makes it especially dangerous when used in drone-delivered attacks against exposed infantry in trenches or dugouts.

Images and footage shared by Vodohrai also show the process of Russian troops extracting yellow phosphorus from mortar rounds. This supports the group’s assessment that Russian forces are attempting to modify standard munitions to increase their destructive potential against personnel, rather than for obscuring movements.

Since 2014, Russian forces have also used 9M22S incendiary munitions launched from multiple rocket systems against Ukrainian territory. The latest development marks a continuation and possible escalation of Russia’s use of incendiary weapons during its war in Ukraine.

Ukrainian forces launched a coordinated overnight assault, striking deep into both Russian territory and occupied areas. The attacks ignited fires and explosions at critical fuel and drone infrastructure sites in Russia's Volgograd, and in the occupied Crimea and Donetsk, aiming to degrade the enemy’s logistics and offensive capabilities, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

General Staff confirms coordinated strikes across Russian and occupied areas

The General Staff reported on 6 November 2025 that Ukraine’s Defense Forces hit several high-value targets linked to Russia’s war effort. The confirmed targets included a major oil refinery in Russia’s Volgograd Oblast, three fuel depots in Russian-occupied Crimea, and a base used for storing, assembling, and launching Shahed-type drones in occupied Donetsk.

The operation involved missile troops, artillery units, the 414th Brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces, and Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The military described the attack as part of a larger campaign aimed at destroying elements of the aggressor’s military-industrial infrastructure.

Strike on Volgograd refinery sparks fire

Ukrainian forces struck the Lukoil-Volgogradneftepererabotka oil refinery in Russia’s Volgograd Oblast. The facility processes 15.7 million tons of oil per year—around 5.6% of Russia’s total refining volume. The General Staff confirmed explosions and a fire at the site.

Footage published by Ukrainian Telegram channel Exilenova+ showed explosions and fire in the refinery area. The channel also released videos capturing what appeared to be a Pantsir air defense system's missile launch and hit on a residential building.

The governor claimed the area came under a “terrorist drone attack,” alleging that a 48-year-old civilian man was killed by shrapnel when debris hit a 24-story apartment building.

Fuel depots burn in Hvardiiske and Simferopol

Simultaneously, Ukrainian forces struck three oil infrastructure sites in occupied Crimea. The General Staff confirmed a successful hit on a reservoir and several rail tankers at a fuel loading rack in the village of Hvardiiske. Two additional targets in Simferopol were also hit—both described as reservoir parks. Fires broke out at each location, according to the report.

According to Telegram channel Krymsky Veter, the first drones were noticed around 1:00 a.m. Russian air defense opened fire over Hvardiiske at 2:00 a.m., and four separate impacts were reported by 3:00 a.m. The channel said it was unclear whether the target was the airfield or the fuel depot.

In Simferopol, Krymsky Veter’s sources reported a fire near the settlement of Bitumne at around 2:30 a.m. Witnesses suspected it was the Krymneftesbyt oil depot. Photos and videos shared on the channel showed flames rising from the site. Another fire broke out in the thermal power plant's area. A loud explosion at 6:01 a.m. was reportedly heard from Simferopol to the southern coast of Crimea.

Shahed drone base in Donetsk struck with secondary detonation

Ukraine also confirmed hitting a Shahed drone facility in occupied Donetsk, located within the territory of the former Donetsk airport. The base was used to store, assemble, and launch Iranian-designed drones employed in daily Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities, according to the report. Russia uses the Iranian-designed Shaheds in its daily attacks against Ukrainian cities.

The strike was carried out by Ukrainian missile and artillery units, drone forces, and special operations personnel. The General Staff reported confirmed explosions and a powerful secondary detonation—likely from stored munitions—at the target site.

Telegram channel Exilenova+ posted videos of the explosion, including footage of a shockwave and fireball. One caption read, “Clarification: ammo depot near Donetsk destroyed.” Another post described it simply as a “missile strike” on Donetsk.

Update

Telegram channel Dosye Shpiona reported that late on 5 November, a strike hit Geran-2 launch positions and storage sites at the Donetsk airport base. The attack reportedly involved both cruise missiles and loitering munitions.

Geran-2 is Russia's designation for the Iranian Shahed-126 drone.

According to the channel, the strike destroyed a munitions depot, a fuel storage facility, and a UAV pre-launch preparation point, while also damaging power and communication infrastructure.

Dosye Shpiona claimed that up to 1,000 Geran-2 drones and more than 1,500 warheads were present at the airfield at the time.

Two US senators announced plans to summon Russia's ambassador to Washington for a hearing on the systematic abduction of Ukrainian children. The bipartisan initiative from Senators Lindsey Graham and Brian Schatz on 29 October aims to demand accountability for what Ukrainian authorities state are 19,546 documented child deportations since the 2022 invasion.

This congressional hearing represents a new push, moving the accountability effort beyond international courts. By seeking to publicly confront the Russian ambassador, the senators aim to apply direct diplomatic pressure, as legal enforcement of ICC warrants remains impractical.

A bipartisan push for accountability

Two US senators announced plans to invite Russia's ambassador to Washington, Alexander Darchiev, to answer for the systematic abduction of Ukrainian children. Senators Lindsey Graham (Republican, South Carolina) and Brian Schatz (Democrat, Hawaii) told The Hill on Wednesday that they planned to formally invite the ambassador to testify before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations.

The initiative follows growing concerns over the scale of the deportations and the preservation of evidence.

"This is a real atrocity, and the American government should help to establish the record and try to remedy what has been done," Schatz told TheHill.

The Ukrainian embassy in Washington has reportedly begun preparations for the hearing. Schatz acknowledged that senators likely cannot compel a foreign diplomat to testify, noting they would issue an invitation rather than a subpoena.

Kremlin's blatant denial

The Russian Embassy in Washington rejected the senators' initiative, calling it "just another provocation," in a statement reported by TASS. Russian diplomats claimed the hearing was intended "to cover up war crimes committed by neo-Nazi regime in Kiev against civilians, including children in Donbas."

The embassy accused Ukraine and its allies of waging a "campaign of lies and fakes of ‘tens of thousands’ of abducted minors," claiming that "the actual list presented by Ukraine does not exceed 339."

While stating that Russia is open to "cooperation in good faith" to reunite families, the embassy concluded that "Any Russian participation in such a highly biased hearing is therefore out of question."

The scale of the abductions

According to data from the Ukrainian government portal Children of War, 19,546 children have been documented as deported as of 30 October 2025. The portal also reports that 661 children have been killed and 2,205 wounded during the war, while 1,744 children have been successfully returned.

Key data from a September 2025 report by Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab includes:

• Total Facilities: Children from Ukraine have been taken to at least 210 facilities inside Russia and the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine since the full-scale invasion in 2022.
• Re-education Programs: Re-education activities aligned with pro-Russia narratives have occurred in at least 130 sites (61.9%) identified in the study where Ukrainian children have been taken.
• Military Training: Children from Ukraine underwent military training in at least 39 locations (18.6%) identified by the Humanitarian Research Lab.
• Facility Expansion: At least 49 of the 210 locations (23.3%) identified were expanded or had new permanent roofed structures added since the full-scale invasion.
• Government Management: Russia's government directly manages at least 106 of the 210 locations where Ukrainian children have been taken, including 55% of facilities where re-education occurred and 58% where militarization took place.

Concerns mounted that the collection of this vital data would be disrupted after the Trump administration terminated funding for the Yale tracking program in March 2025, which could result in the destruction of war crimes evidence. “This data is absolutely crucial to Ukraine’s efforts to return their children home,” wrote a group of US lawmakers.

International bodies cite genocide pattern

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in March 2023 for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova on charges of unlawful deportation of children.

Russia denounced the warrants but does not deny relocating Ukrainian children. Grigory Karasin, head of the international committee in Russia's Federation Council, claimed in July 2023 that 700,000 children had "found refuge" in Russia, "fleeing the bombing and shelling from the conflict areas in Ukraine."

In an official resolution, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe stated that documented evidence of child deportations "matches" the crime of genocide as defined by Article 2(e) of the Genocide Convention, which includes the "the forcible transfer of children from one group to another group."

Despite these measures, returns remain limited. Recent successes include eight children who escaped occupation in mid-October. First Lady Melania Trump has also reportedly advocated for the children's return, exchanging letters with Putin.

Related:

Eight children returned from occupation: sisters bullied for Ukrainian language, boy hid from Russians

Swedish MP becomes OSCE special envoy for abducted Ukrainian children. Russia erases their identity and turns into future soldiers

North Korean troops are coordinating reconnaissance and supporting Russian strikes against Ukraine, according to the UK Defence Ministry.

North Korea deployed approximately 11,000 troops to Russia's Kursk Oblast starting from October 2024, with forces entering combat operations in November.

A year later, Ukraine’s General Staff reported that the Russian leadership continues to deploy North Korean units in active combat due to critical personnel losses and the failed offensive operation in Sumy Oblast.

War as a testing ground for North Korean weapons

The British Intelligence has documented the first known instance of direct involvement of North Korean forces in operations on Ukrainian territory in October 2025.

Their drone operators were spotted assisting Russian forces in using multiple launch rocket systems to strike Ukrainian positions in Sumy Oblast.

Although North Korean troops likely conducted tactical strikes and reconnaissance operations earlier against Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, their main role there was infantry, carrying out offensive combat operations against Ukrainian troops in Kursk.

"D​PRK is likely seeking to exploit the afforded by the conflict to improve its warfighting capability, including UAS proficiency," the intelligence report said.

High-level command approval

The ministry added that any deployment of North Korean troops on Ukraine’s internationally recognized, sovereign territory must be approved by both Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.