KYIV: Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency said on Friday a Ukrainian drone attack had hit a Russian military base deep inside annexed Crimea, while residents reported casualties, explosions and a road closure.
Early on Friday, Russia reported one of the biggest coordinated Ukrainian air raids yet over Russian-controlled territory but said air defense systems had downed all 42 drones attacking Crimea before they could hit their targets.
Ukrainian intelligence officials said the attack struck Russia’s 126th Coastal Defense Brigade based in Perevalnoye, a town more than 200 km (120 miles) from Ukraine-controlled territory.
“We confirm that there was a hit,” said GUR spokesman Andriy Yusov, according to Ukrainian media outlet Liga.Net.
Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimea in 2014, declaring it Russian territory. The United States says it supports Ukrainian attacks on Russian military targets on the Black Sea peninsula of because it should be demilitarised.
“People — not only on the Ukrainian mainland but also in Crimea — need to remember and believe that our victory and their liberation are not far away,” Ukraine’s military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said of Friday’s strike.
Perevalnoye residents, posting on the Telegram messaging app, reported hearing blasts from the military base and cited casualties.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports.
“Two people died on a firing range, one was taken to a hospital in a severe condition. This is information from above, from the firing range,” said a user nicknamed Abdul Has, whose profile picture shows a man in camouflaged uniform.
Another user, Vlad the Local, said roughly one person was dead.
“Why was a gate to the military town closed?” user Julia Julia asked.
Another resident with the call sign Lis asked others not to disclose information.
“Residents of Perevalnoye, I strongly recommend — don’t write here what happened and how,” Lis wrote. “We help them to direct fire in the future with that.”
Ukraine says it hit Russian military base in annexed Crimea
https://arab.news/6sjg3
Ukraine says it hit Russian military base in annexed Crimea
- Ukrainian intelligence officials said the attack struck Russia’s 126th Coastal Defense Brigade based in Perevalnoye
- Russia claimed its air defense systems had downed all 42 drones attacking Crimea before they could hit their targets
Indonesia to send record number of women officers to assist Hajj pilgrims
- Women comprise 33% of Indonesian Hajj officers in 2026
- They will assist the world’s largest contingent of Hajj pilgrims
JAKARTA: Indonesia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah on Friday concluded a training program for Hajj officers, a group that this year includes a record number of female guides to help Indonesian pilgrims perform the spiritual journey.
The world’s biggest Muslim-majority nation, Indonesia sends the largest contingent of Hajj pilgrims every year, comprising 221,000 people in 2026.
They will be assisted by more than 1,600 Indonesian officers who came from different parts of the country to participate in a 20-day training program in East Jakarta to prepare them for the roles, ahead of the pilgrimage season in May.
“Education and training for Indonesian Hajj officers … are carried out as part of the operational preparations for the 2026 Hajj pilgrimage,” said Puji Raharjo, director general of Hajj management at the ministry, during the closing ceremony on Friday.
“This program is aimed at ensuring the physical, mental, technical and organizational readiness of the officers in order to guide, serve and protect Indonesian Hajj pilgrims.”
Indonesia is sending more than 500 female Hajj officers in 2026 — its largest group of women guides yet.
“This year, women officers comprise about 33 percent, the highest in the history of Hajj management in Indonesia,” Arifatul Choiri Fauzi, the minister of women’s empowerment and child protection, told reporters.
As over 55 percent of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims are women and most of them are elderly, female officers can help ensure that they are treated with more care and empathy, she added.
Fauzi said: “There are many issues that are more suitable to be handled by female officers, things related to women’s issues, assistance inside the room, or emergencies that concern the privacy of the (women) pilgrims.”
The training program, which ran from Jan. 10-30, was aimed at preparing the officers physically and educating them on existing Hajj policies and mechanisms, while also covering operational case studies and lessons on effective communication and Arabic, as well as simulations of real-life situations related to the pilgrimage.
Indonesian Hajj officers will undergo a round of training online in February, before another session is held with reference to their departure locations in Indonesia.
“Every year, Indonesia sends the largest number of pilgrims in the world. This fact demands us to be truly ready and organized with officers who are dependable. Hajj officers fill a strategic role, you represent the state for the pilgrims, (and) you represent the state in front of the world,” Minister of Hajj and Umrah Mochamad Irfan Yusuf said while addressing this year’s batch of Hajj officers.
“This training and guidance program is therefore very important, as this is where you all prepare in order to understand the extent of your duties, strengthen coordination and come together in unity and discipline for the mission ahead.”
