3:23 • no narration • every clip credited on screen • today's news first, then the war from 2022 to now • as of 12:10 p.m. PT, Sunday, Oct. 18
Content note: shows war damage, fires and strikes (no close-ups of the dead or wounded); some clips are unverified social-media video and are labeled where they appear.
The President. Saturday evening, Oct. 17, speaking to reporters at Mar-a-Lago about his order waiving parts of the Russia sanctions law, President Trump said: “It’s a very good decision, and it’s going to be a decision that’s good for the country, and I think good for the world” (NBC News). On Friday, Oct. 16, he signed the order waiving key provisions of the Graham Russia sanctions act “in the national interests of the United States” (NBC News). On Thursday, Oct. 15, in a Newsmax interview, he called Ukraine’s renewed refinery strikes “a disgrace” and said “I find Zelensky to be more difficult to deal with than Putin” (Reuters via RTE; The Guardian).
Today, Sunday, Oct. 18. Ukraine launched its largest reported drone raid on the St. Petersburg area overnight, hitting an oil terminal and depot; Gov. Alexander Beglov said 1 person was killed and 5 hurt (The Guardian reports 15 hurt across the raid), and Russia’s Defense Ministry claims it shot down 1,015 Ukrainian drones (claims, not independently verified) (Kyiv Independent; RFE/RL). Russia hit Ukraine with 180 attack drones (26 of them jet-powered) and an Iskander-M missile, aimed largely at power stations; regional officials report at least 10 killed and 73 hurt across Ukraine in the past day (Kyiv Independent). Zelensky told NBC’s Meet the Press that U.S. intelligence on incoming missiles was blocked for a period and is now restored. No ceasefire is in effect.
Civilian toll. The UN human rights monitoring mission verified at least 17,605 civilians killed and 55,846 injured from Feb. 24, 2022 through Sept. 30, 2026, including about 850 children killed; September 2026 (328 killed, 2,105 injured) was the deadliest September of the war. The UN says the real figures are considerably higher (UN OHCHR/HRMMU, published Oct. 15-16, 2026). Ukraine’s ombudsman counted 744 children killed as of Sept. 25, 2026.
Today in detail (click to open)
News as of 12:10 p.m. PT. Figures from each side are claims unless noted.
- St. Petersburg area. Overnight Ukrainian drones hit the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal, the Ruchyi oil depot and warehouses; Ozon and a VK data center were targeted (both companies confirmed). Gov. Beglov: 1 killed, 5 injured; 12 apartment buildings and 2 houses damaged. Leningrad governor Drozdenko: 127-145 drones shot down over the region (figures differ by report); about 20,000 without power. Kyiv Independent could not independently verify targets or damage. (Kyiv Independent; The Guardian; RFE/RL)
- Russian claim. The Defense Ministry says it downed 1,015 Ukrainian drones overnight; Moscow Mayor Sobyanin said 75 were shot down heading for Moscow. RFE/RL: could not be independently verified. The Kremlin (Peskov, via TASS) said Russia’s response is “systematic, large-scale.”
- Russia’s strikes on Ukraine. Ukrainian Air Force: 180 attack drones (26 jet-powered Shaheds/Gerans) and one Iskander-M overnight; 152 drones intercepted; hits at 20 locations; power stations targeted in the Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi and Odesa regions. Regional officials: at least 10 killed and 73 hurt in the past day (Donetsk region 7 killed; Zaporizhzhia, Poltava 1 each; Sumy region 2). Saturday’s attack on the energy grid was among the largest: 332 drones plus missiles including Kalibrs, at least 8 killed and about 60 hurt (Al Jazeera), about 1 million people without power at one point. Zelensky: in the past week Russia used nearly 2,700 attack drones, 1,700 guided bombs and 66 missiles. (Kyiv Independent; Al Jazeera; Ukrinform)
- Jet-powered drones. 3,520 jet-powered Gerans were launched in September 2026 and about 54% were intercepted, versus about 90% for piston-engine drones, according to Ukraine’s Air Force spokesman (to the Wall Street Journal, via ISW).
- Front line. Little change, per ISW’s Oct. 17 assessment: Russia’s claims of new villages were denied by Ukraine’s General Staff, and ISW found no evidence of them; fighting centers on Kostiantynivka, Dobropillya, Kupiansk and Hulyaipole. (ISW)
- Diplomacy. Zelensky spoke by phone with U.S. envoys Witkoff and Kushner about talks in Miami and Patriot air defense, and hopes for talks Oct. 20-21 (Kyiv Independent). Trump’s announced “energy ceasefire” of Oct. 11 collapsed; strikes on both sides continue. Zelensky also said a Starshield speed limit still hampers his interceptor drones; Treasury Secretary Bessent called that accusation “reckless” and Secretary of State Rubio said it is “categorically false” that the White House ordered a slowdown (NBC News).
- NATO border. Lithuania told residents in central and northern regions to shelter about an hour Sunday morning after an object, likely a drone, entered its airspace; Kaunas airport briefly closed (The Guardian; The Independent).
Civilian toll: the numbers and who says so (click to open)
| Figure | Who / date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 17,605 killed 55,846 injured | UN OHCHR / Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU); Feb. 24, 2022 - Sept. 30, 2026; published Oct. 15-16, 2026 | Verified minimum. 73,451 civilian casualties total. The UN says actual numbers are “likely considerably higher,” especially in Mariupol, Lysychansk, Popasna and Sievierodonetsk. |
| About 850 children killed 3,373 injured | UN HRMMU; same period | 462 boys, 361 girls, 27 sex unknown. |
| 328 killed 2,105 injured | UN HRMMU; September 2026 | Highest for any September of the war; 85% above September 2025 (249 killed, 1,068 injured). Jan.-Sept. 2026: 2,570 killed, 15,211 injured, 59% more than the same months of 2025. |
| By year (killed) | UN HRMMU | 2022: 8,423 • 2023: 1,975 • 2024: 2,088 • 2025: 2,549 • Jan.-Sept. 2026: 2,570. |
| 744 children killed 2,904 injured | Ukrainian ombudsman’s office; Sept. 25, 2026 | Ukrainian government count; different method and date than the UN’s. Prosecutor General: 707 children killed, 2,548 injured as of June 4, 2026. |
| At least 10 killed 73 injured | Ukrainian regional officials, past day to Oct. 18 (via Kyiv Independent) | Preliminary and overlapping counts. |
| 53 killed, 462 injured in Russia; 87 killed, 436 injured in occupied areas | Russian authorities’ claims, cited in the UN September update | The UN says it has not been able to verify the vast majority of these. |
Why the real total is likely higher: the UN counts only cases its monitors could verify, and says access to occupied areas and to the worst-hit cities was limited. These figures are civilians only; military losses are not counted here.
The war in the video (click to open)
- Oct. 18, 2026: Ukrainian drones set fire to St. Petersburg oil facilities; Russian drones hit Rivne and the grid (see above).
- 2022: Russia’s full-scale invasion begins Feb. 24. Kharkiv is shelled from the first week (Mar. 1 rocket strike on the city center). After Russian forces withdraw from the Kyiv region, Bucha’s ruined streets become evidence of what happened there (UN and Ukrainian investigators have documented civilian killings). A bomb hits the Mariupol drama theatre on Mar. 16. Ukraine retakes Kherson on Nov. 11-14.
- 2023: The Kakhovka dam is destroyed on June 6 and floods the Dnipro valley (Ukraine and Russia blame each other). Russia claimed Bakhmut in May 2023 after months of fighting; Ukrainian forces withdrew from Avdiivka in February 2024.
- Energy grid: From autumn 2022 Russia repeatedly strikes Ukraine’s power system; by February 2026 CBS reported that Russia had “turned winter into a weapon.”
- Kyiv under missile and drone attack: repeated large strikes through 2024-2026, including the July 8, 2024 hit on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital and a July 6, 2026 attack that killed at least nine people (Reuters).
- Ukraine strikes back deep inside Russia: Operation Spiderweb (June 1, 2025, Ukraine’s Security Service says it hit Russian bombers using drones launched from trucks), and a continuing campaign against Russian refineries, including a Moscow refinery in June 2026.
- Fiber-optic FPV drones: RFE/RL reported in March 2025 that Russia had been using them for several months, primarily in the Kursk region. A thin glass-fiber cable unspools behind the drone, so the pilot’s video and controls cannot be jammed. By 2026 the used-up cables hang in trees and across fields and roads; Reuters reports they can stretch for 12 miles and lie along the 746-mile front line, and that birds near the front are weaving them into nests.
- 2025-2026: Russia moves to mass-produced jet-powered Geran drones that fly up to 600 km/h (DW, Sept. 2026); the “kill zone” of drones makes movement near the front line deadly (BBC, May 2026); Pokrovsk is devastated after months of Russian assault (Global News, Dec. 2025).
Photos (click to open)
Credits are on each picture; licenses are as listed on Wikimedia Commons. Frames from videos are credited to the outlet that published the video.
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Transcript (click to open)
| Time | Source | Words / on-screen text |
|---|---|---|
| 0:00 | On screen | Ukraine: Drones, Destruction & Civilian Toll — Sunday, October 18, 2026 |
| 0:04 | On screen | The President on Russia & Ukraine: “It’s a very good decision” (Sat., Oct. 17); Oct. 16 executive order; Oct. 15 Newsmax remarks; Oct. 11 “energy ceasefire” |
| 0:26 | On screen | Today: 10 killed, 73 hurt (Russian attacks, past day); 1 killed, 5-15 hurt (St. Petersburg, Russian officials); 1,015 drones (Russian MoD claim) |
| 0:32 | Clip audio — President Zelensky (NBC) | “It was blocked for some period of time, and then it was deblocked by the American side. We are very thankful for this. Now it works. Yeah, and now it works.” (answer to: has the U.S. cut off intelligence sharing with Ukraine?) |
| 1:30 | Clip audio — CBS News reporter | “Part of Russia’s strategy is attacking Ukraine’s power grid, turning winter into a weapon.” |
| 2:02 | Clip audio — RFE/RL (voice-over translation; subtitles are RFE/RL’s) | “For several months now, the Russian Army has been using fiber-optic FPV [first-person view] drones … primarily in the Kursk region of Russia.” |
| 2:13 | Clip audio — Reuters | “In Ukraine’s frontline regions the cables glisten in the sunlight like giant spider’s webs. They can stretch for 12 miles, tangled in trees and draped across fields and rooftops, along the 746-mile front line.” |
| 2:28 | Clip audio — Reuters | “Ultra-thin fiber-optic cables are used by Ukrainian and Russian troops to guide aerial attack drones and make them impervious to electronic jamming.” |
| 2:41 | Clip audio — DW News | “This is Russia’s new mass weapon against Ukraine – drones with a jet engine. They fly up to 600 km per hour, much faster than the older piston engine models.” |
| 3:04 | On screen | UN-verified: 17,605 killed, 55,846 injured, 850 children killed (Feb. 24, 2022 - Sept. 30, 2026; published Oct. 15-16, 2026); the real toll is likely higher |
| 3:11 | On screen | September 2026: 328 killed, 2,105 hurt (UN); Ukraine’s ombudsman: 744 children killed (Sept. 25, 2026); real totals likely higher |
| 3:18 | On screen | Sources & credits |
Other clips have natural sound or no speech; on-screen labels only.
Main sources: UN OHCHR/HRMMU, Kyiv Independent, The Guardian, RFE/RL, ISW, Al Jazeera, NBC News. Unverified social-media video is labeled on screen.
Clips used under fair use for news commentary; sources are credited in the video.
