A shocking incident of alleged intentional targeting of an unarmed civilian by a Russian drone in southern Ukraine’s Kherson region has drawn widespread international condemnation, with Ukrainian leaders calling it a clear example of systemic war crimes perpetrated by Russian forces against civilian populations.
The dramatic footage of the attack, shared by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on his official Telegram channel, captures the entire harrowing ordeal: a 52-year-old street vegetable vendor identified only as Yuriy is relentlessly pursued by a hovering drone along a city street in the Tavriiskyi district of northern Kherson, mere miles from active frontline positions. As the drone locks onto him, Yuriy attempts to evade the aircraft, first ducking behind his white work van, then holding up heads of garlic toward the drone’s camera in a desperate attempt to prove he is an unarmed civilian, not a military target. Even as Yuriy ducks under a market umbrella while fleeing, the drone continues tracking him before diving directly at him and detonating on impact.
Yuriy survived the attack but was hospitalized with concussion, blunt force trauma, and multiple shrapnel wounds, according to his treating physician. His work van, which he used for his vending business, was completely destroyed in the blast. In a video statement released from his hospital bed by Kherson’s regional governor after the attack, Yuriy recounted that he and his wife had only just begun setting out crates of tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants and other produce for sale when they heard the distinctive buzzing of a drone overhead. When his wife fled the area, the drone redirected its pursuit exclusively to Yuriy.
Zelensky emphasized in his post that the footage must be seen globally, arguing that it provides irrefutable proof that Russian forces have adopted a deliberate strategy of terror against Ukrainian civilians. “It must see every piece of evidence that Russia has gone mad, and every fact that Russian soldiers are enjoying killings and tormenting people,” Zelensky wrote.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha echoed the president’s condemnation, labeling the attack a barbaric war crime and noting that these so-called “human safari” drone strikes are a deliberate, systemic Russian strategy. “The sadist operating this drone knows full well that he is targeting a civilian,” Sybiha added.
The practice of “human safari” attacks, in which remotely operated drones are used to hunt down and kill unarmed civilians in frontline areas, has been well-documented in Kherson for years. A 2025 United Nations report confirmed that Russian armed forces have recurrently killed and injured civilians in the region through this tactic. In many cases, drone operators film the pursuit and attack, then post the footage online to spread terror, allowing thousands to view the final terrified moments of their victims. The UN has repeatedly stated that publicizing these videos of attacked civilians amounts to an additional war crime of outrages upon personal dignity. Independent fact-checking team BBC Verify has confirmed the geolocation of the attack footage, matching it to a public market beside a roundabout in the Tavriiskyi district, matching Ukrainian authorities’ accounts.