Deliberate FPV Drone Attack on a Civilian in Kherson is Further Evidence of russia’s Systematic Attacks on Civilians
On August 4, 2026, russian forces deliberately targeted a civilian man selling vegetables in Kherson. Before striking, the operator of an enemy FPV drone hovered over the man for some time, deliberately intimidating him, before carrying out the attack. The recurrence of such incidents, including the pursuit of vehicles and repeated strikes against victims or rescuers, points not to isolated incidents but to a systematic practice that residents of frontline areas often describe as the “human safari”.
According to Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, 967 civilians in Ukraine have been killed by russian FPV drone strikes since 2022. Between 2023 and 2026, the East SOS War Crimes Documentation Team documented 46 cases involving the use of FPV drones by russian forces. Of these, 33 involved attacks on civilians, while a further 13 targeted humanitarian workers and volunteers. The documented evidence is systematically shared with the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
russian FPV drones are most frequently used to attack civilian vehicles and people in the streets. Documented cases also include strikes on civilian trucks.
The circumstances of some incidents indicate that drone operators deliberately identify places where civilians gather and carry out attacks during humanitarian aid distributions, near shops, and in other locations where civilians are present. Testimonies also refer to attacks on residential buildings. This broadens the range of threats facing civilians and indicates that russian forces deliberately disregard the distinction between military and civilian objects.
Below are several examples from witness testimonies. All respondents’ names have been changed for security reasons.
On November 30, 2024, in the settlement of Antonivka near Kherson, a russian FPV drone attacked a public transport stop where civilians were present. The drone approached the stop, hovered over it, and then struck the people there, injuring them in the lower limbs. Olena was among those injured:
“The only thing I managed to do was run into the shelter of the stop. There were already people there; there were four of us. The last thing I remember is it hovering over the stop. I heard this clicking sound – and then nothing. I felt terrible pain in my arm, saw people covered in blood around me, and realized – it was a drone dropping an explosive.”
The woman also reported an incident in which a russian FPV drone attacked a civilian who was caring for abandoned pets in the city of Oleshky:
“Last year [2025 – ed.], a drone dropped explosives on a woman who was looking after cats. She was killed.”
On July 25, 2025, in the village of Kurylivka, Kupiansk Raion, Kharkiv Oblast, russian forces used an FPV drone to attack civilians at an agricultural enterprise. The FPV drone pursued Oleh and his colleague as they attempted to reach shelter. The drone exploded approximately one meter from them, causing shrapnel injuries:
“The drone appeared out of nowhere and chased me and my colleague. We ran toward the shelter, but we didn’t make it. It exploded right at our feet, about a meter away. We were injured. My colleague stayed there; he didn’t want to evacuate. I had to leave because I had lost hearing in both ears, and my legs and chest were badly injured.”
The deliberate targeting of civilians constitutes a violation of international humanitarian law. Such acts may amount to war crimes under Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Documenting these incidents and ensuring their proper assessment under international law are essential to securing accountability for war crimes. The use of FPV drones against civilians must be unequivocally condemned by the international community as an act that violates the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.
More information on documented FPV drone attacks against civilians is available on the Foundation’s website.
