Overview
- Russia’s Investigative Committee opened a terrorism case into the Hhorly attack, reporting 27 dead including two minors and 31 injured including five children, with regional days of mourning declared.
- Kherson’s ombudsman said multiple drones struck the hotel-café area in sequence, first hitting the main exit, then the building, and finally people evacuating through a rear route.
- The Defense Ministry denied conducting strikes inside Kharkiv and said videos point to a likely detonation of Ukrainian munitions at the Persona mall location.
- Air defenses reported two waves of interceptions on January 2—five drones between 09:00 and 13:00 and 11 more between 14:00 and 20:00—over regions including Nizhny Novgorod, Moscow, Belgorod, Rostov, Tatarstan, Voronezh, Crimea, and the Azov Sea.
- Regional updates said Ukrainian UAVs damaged civilian property in several Belgorod municipalities without reported casualties, Rostov authorities reported drones downed in four districts, and Voronezh lifted a UAV danger alert after a brief warning.