MOSCOW, August 26. /TASS/. Russian air defenses intercepted and eliminated 20 Ukrainian drones above seven regions in south Russia, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

"During the past night, the Kiev regime’s attempted terrorist attacks on facilities in Russia with the use of unmanned aerial vehicles were thwarted," the ministry said in its statement.

"On-duty air defenses intercepted and destroyed 20 fixed-wing drones. Nine of them were shot down over the Saratov Region, two over each of the Belgorod, Bryansk and Tula Regions, as well as one over each over the Oryol and Ryazan Regions," the ministry said.

Saratov Region Governor Roman Busargin stated earlier that "In the early hours [of Monday] air defenses destroyed unmanned aerial vehicles [UAV]."

"There are reports that the debris [of downed UAVs] hit residential buildings in the cities of Saratov and Engels," he added.

Regional health authorities reported later that four civilians were wounded including a woman, who was hospitalized in a serious condition, following Ukrainian military drone attacks overnight on Russia’s southern Saratov Region.