The Russian defence ministry said that its air forces destroyed 10 long-range missiles, known as ATACMS, that Ukraine's military launched overnight at Crimea on Wednesday.
Nine attack drones and several other pieces of air weapons were destroyed over the Belgorod region, the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app.
It added that five attack drones were also destroyed over Russia's Kursk region and three over the Bryansk region.
Putin visits Delhi as Russia, India seek to increase and diversify trade
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in New Delhi on Thursday to start a two-day state visit, and India and Russia both said they want to boost mutual trade and expand the variety of items in transactions.
Hong Kong races to remove scaffolding nets blamed for fuelling deadly fire
Hong Kong authorities rushed on Thursday to remove mesh netting on all buildings undergoing renovation across the city after the material was blamed for fanning a blaze last week that has killed at least 159 people.
Sri Lanka cyclone survivors afraid to go home, stuck in relief centres
Residents of Kithulbadde village in central Sri Lanka say they have been left in the lurch after last week's deadly cyclone and many are stuck in relief centres as damaged infrastructure has made them wary of returning home.
Australia says world will follow social media ban as Meta starts blocking teens
Australia's internet regulator said a teen social media ban would be the first domino to fall in a global push to rein in Big Tech, as Meta's Instagram, Facebook and Threads began locking out hundreds of thousands of accounts ahead of a deadline next week.
Trump administration orders enhanced vetting for applicants of H-1B visa
The Trump administration has announced on Wednesday the increased vetting of applicants for H-1B visas for highly skilled workers, with an internal State Department memo saying that anyone involved in "censorship" of free speech be considered for rejection.
