Attacks on Civilians with Small Drones: A Global Picture
@littleflyingrobots
Documenting, analyzing, and mapping the growing global problem of attacks on civilians with small drones, from @faineg.bsky.social. View the map of global attacks here:
July 2026 joint exercises between Russia and Myanmar's junta military appear to have featured small drones in a big way: t.me/combatnews77...
This month, Russian military forces are training the Myanmar military in using FPV drones in combat. t.me/intelslava/9...
Here's another example: on 3/17/2026, the same Russian Telegram channel posted video of a FPV drone hitting a van marked with the Lighthouse of Revival NGO's logo. t.me/osvedomitell...
I've been matching up Russian-posted drone videos of attacks on apparent civilian targets to incidents announced by Ukrainian sources in my database. Like in this case form April, where a Russian Telegram channel posted video of FPV drone attack on a man on a moped: t.me/osvedomitell...
On May 2nd, a Russian milblogger bragged about their constant drone attacks on Kherson minibuses, claiming "Collateral damage is minimal." According to official Ukrainian sources - which use the same photos - those May 2nd minibus attacks killed 2 civilians and wounded 11. t.me/osvedomitell...
Last November, Russian FPV drones killed two civilians - and their dog - in the Kharkiv area, who were explicitly carrying white flags to demonstrate their noncombatant status. Despicable. Warning: Telegram link is graphic. (Wonder who shot and uploaded the drone footage). t.me/prokuratura_...
Here's another May 14th post in which osvedomitell_alex (falsely) claims that clearly-marked UN vehicles were an obvious ruse. t.me/osvedomitell...
Indeed, osvedomitell_alex appears to have just doubled-down, claiming in a second post hours later that a FPV drone strike on an (unmarked) civilian-appearing vehicle was also a legitimate strike on a "dual-use" target. t.me/osvedomitell...
Meanwhile, original milblogger t.me/osvedomitell... attempts to justify this incredibly obvious violation of basic IHL by falsely claiming that the UN vehicles were "fake" and that their movements hadn't been coordinated in advance - when in fact, the UN had carried out the requisite coordination.
Here's the video of the Russian FPV drone attack on clearly-marked UN humanitarian aid vehicles, as reposted by Telegram milblogger t.me/zlobnyi_suro... :
Resistance fighters are using drones to terrorize the enemy in creative ways, such as by using drones to drop angry hornets on junta forces:
Drones are a regular feature in the ongoing conflict between Myanmar’s military junta and the rebel groups that oppose it, as this March 19th update from an alleged rebel Telegram source highlights: t.me/Thadinsubue/...
Jeanne Shaheen is right about this: you need to be working at a rate of two week refresh/iteration cycles to be competitive in modern drone warfare (which the Ukrainians have mastered), not a six month one. What she doesn’t mention: you’ll also need cheap Chinese parts to realistically do this.
Per video (warning, very graphic - view at the link) from Ukraine’s 28th Motor Brigade, a Russian FPV drone appears to have intentionally targeted and killed a civilian attempting to flee the area by bicycle. From February 27th, 2026. t.me/dvish_since2...
“On March 2, 2026, occupiers hit a car in Druzhkovka with an FPV drone, in which a woman and four men aged 51 to 60 were inside.” t.me/nvua_officia...
Relevant passages:
June 8th: Russian drones drop explosives on an ambulance in the Kherson region, injuring the ambulance driver. t.me/olexandrprok...
June 27th: Russian suicide/kamikaze FPV drones allegedly strike a civilian vehicle and a clearly-marked ambulance in Novovorontsovka, Ukraine. t.me/khersonskaOD...
On June 27th, a Ukrainian civilian man and woman were injured by Russian drones dropping explosives in the Novodmytrivka area, per Kherson authorities. t.me/khersonskaOD...
On July 4th, Kherson authorities reported that two civilians were injured by explosives dropped from a drone. t.me/khersonskaOD...
Also on July 14th, a Ukrainian civilian in the Novovorontsov community was injured and a civilian car damaged after a Russian drone attack. t.me/khersonskaOD...
On July 14th, Kherson authorities reported that a 37-year-old civilian man was injured after a Russian drone dropped explosives onto his car. t.me/khersonskaOD...
On July 21st, Kherson authorities reported that two civilian men were injured by explosives dropped from a Russian drone. t.me/khersonskaOD...
On July 19th, Kherson authorities reported that a 64-year-old man was injured by explosives dropped from a drone. t.me/khersonskaOD...
Kherson authorities claim that a 74-year-old civilian Ukrainian man was killed by a Russian drone attack in Oleksandrivka on July 18th. t.me/olexandrprok...
Russian electronic warfare specialists are training the Syrian Arab Army on anti-drone tactics. x.com/JHArnous/sta...
Russian drone builders post video claiming to show "updated high-precision FPV drones “VT-40” with a night camera." 1/7/2024. t.me/sudoplatov_o...
Russian FPV builders claim to experiment with low-budget thermal sensors on a FPV drone for night-time operations. 12/29/23. t.me/FPV_vyZOV/724
More pictures of the alleged Ukrainian thermal sensor equipped FPV drone:
Russian source claims that Ukrainians are using FPV drones equipped with thermal sensors. 1/8/24. t.me/nwindpro/234...