Russian FPV drone attacks police car during evacuation in Vovchansk, killing officer

UKRAINE, KHARKIV OBLAST, May 22 – In Vovchansk, the Russian military attacked a police car with an FPV drone during the evacuation, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko reported.

Klymenko said there were two police officers in the car. They were on their way to rescue civilians. One police officer was killed and another injured in the Russian drone strike.

Border towns and villages in Kharkiv Oblast have been under heavy Russian artillery fire and airstrikes since Russia launched a new ground offensive north and northeast of the region toward Vovchansk and Lyptsi on May 10.

The city of Vovchansk, located 5 km from the state border and about 60 km from Kharkiv, is currently under contestation between the Russian and Ukrainian armies. According to Roman Semenukha, a deputy head of the regional administration, 60% of the city is “under the control of the Ukrainian armed forces.”

In the morning, Russian troops attacked the center of Chuhuyiv in the Kharkiv region, injuring seven people, Oleh Syniehubov reported. A 28-year-old man and women aged 22, 55, 65, 41, 42 and 77 were injured in the attack. A kindergarten was also damaged in the attack. Law enforcement authorities are still investigating what weapon the Russians used to attack.

Syniehubov added that at around 1:10 a.m. on May 22, Russian shelling in Druzheliubivka of Borova municipality resulted in a house burning down and outbuildings being damaged.

Police reported that on May 21, at around 2:30 p.m., a Russian FPV drone attacked a police car in Vilcha, Vovchansk Municipality, injuring a police officer.

Evacuations are currently underway in the region. According to Oleh Syniehubov, volunteers and rescuers evacuated 10,875 people from the border communities of Kharkiv Oblast.

UPD from May 22nd, 6:38 p.m.: Fixed inconsistency in the text.

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