Russia Called Its Strikes On Ukrainian Data Centers A ‘Forced Digital Detox.’ Zelensky Says Kyiv Has Answered By Hitting A Data Center Belonging To Russian Tech Giant Yandex.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv had responded to Russian strikes on Ukrainian data centers by hitting a Yandex data center in Russia’s Ryazan region. The facility caught fire and shut down, and Yandex said it was still assessing whether its equipment could be restored.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv had struck back after Russian attacks on Ukrainian data centers, referring to a drone strike on a Yandex data center in Russia’s Ryazan region. The facility caught fire and shut down, while Yandex said on October 8 that it was still assessing whether the equipment could be restored.

Zelensky made the remarks to journalists while discussing Ukrainian responses to Russian attacks, according to Meduza’s report, which cited RBC-Ukraine. “Data centers — you all know they’ve been hitting our data centers and they still are. We hit back,” he said. He declined to provide further operational details.

The reported Ukrainian drone strike took place overnight on October 8 in Sasovo, in Russia’s Ryazan region. A fire broke out, no injuries were reported, and the data center shut down completely, according to the report. Yandex said that by the evening it did not yet know whether the equipment could be restored, adding that “the extent of the damage to the infrastructure is still being assessed.”

After the strike, users reported disruptions affecting Yandex services and other services, including those operated by Avito, IVI, MegaFon, Russian Railways and T-Bank, as well as several real estate developers. The report does not establish how long the outages lasted or whether all were directly caused by damage at the Yandex site.

At a glance
updateWhen: Strike reported overnight October 8, 20…
The developmentZelensky said Ukraine struck a Yandex data center in Russia after Russian attacks damaged Ukrainian data centers.

Damage to Digital Services

The strike highlights how data centers and digital infrastructure have become part of the conflict’s expanding target set. Disruption at a facility can affect services used by businesses and the public beyond the company that owns it, as the reported outages following the Sasovo strike illustrate. The precise reach and duration of those disruptions remain unconfirmed.

The exchange also underscores the risks of reciprocal attacks on infrastructure. Zelensky linked Ukraine’s action to Russian strikes on data centers, while saying Kyiv would not target children. The competing strikes and statements place civilian consequences and the distinction between military and civilian infrastructure at the center of the latest reporting.

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Russia’s Recent Data Center Strikes

Meduza reported that Russian forces had regularly struck data centers in Ukraine in recent weeks. Since late September, those attacks had damaged or destroyed facilities belonging to at least eight companies, according to the report. Russia’s Defense Ministry described its strikes as “a forced digital detox.”

Zelensky also referred to Russian strikes on Pryluky and Kramatorsk. He said the Pryluky strike killed 29 people, including five children, and that an attack on Kramatorsk killed more than 30 people. Those casualty figures and the characterization of the strikes are reported here as Zelensky’s statements; the supplied material does not provide independent verification or further detail about the incidents.

““A forced digital detox.””

— Russia’s Defense Ministry, as reported by Meduza

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Damage and Outage Scope

The full extent of damage at the Sasovo data center is not yet known, and Yandex had not confirmed whether its equipment could be restored. It is also unclear how long the facility will remain offline and which reported service disruptions were directly linked to the strike.

The supplied report does not provide independent confirmation of the strike’s operational details or explain whether the site had a military role. Zelensky’s statement establishes that he described the attack as a Ukrainian response, but his decision not to give details leaves the operation’s planning and intended effects undisclosed. The reported casualties from the Pryluky and Kramatorsk strikes are likewise presented through Zelensky’s remarks in the source material.

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Yandex Damage Assessment

The next reported milestone is Yandex’s assessment of the damage and whether the affected equipment can be restored. Further information may clarify the expected recovery timeline and whether the service disruptions were caused by the data center’s shutdown.

Any additional statements from Ukrainian or Russian officials could also provide more detail about the strike and the wider pattern of attacks on digital infrastructure. For now, the confirmed account in the source material is limited: Zelensky said Ukraine hit back, the facility caught fire and shut down, and Yandex was still evaluating the damage.

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Key Questions

What did Zelensky say Ukraine struck?

He referred to a Ukrainian strike on a Yandex data center in Russia’s Ryazan region, describing it as a response to Russian attacks on Ukrainian data centers.

Where and when did the strike happen?

The reported drone strike took place overnight on October 8, 2026, at a facility in Sasovo, in the Ryazan region.

Was anyone injured?

The report says no one was hurt. It says a fire broke out and the data center shut down completely.

How much damage did the data center sustain?

The full extent was not yet known. Yandex said it was assessing the infrastructure damage and had not determined whether the equipment could be restored.

What did Russia mean by ‘forced digital detox’?

Russia’s Defense Ministry used that phrase to describe its strikes on Ukrainian data centers, according to Meduza. It was the ministry’s characterization of the attacks, not an independently established description of their effects.

Source: rss

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