MOSCOW, May 2: Ukrainian drones are flying deep into Russia to strike oil facilities, sending up plumes of smoke that can be seen from space and bringing toxic rain to tourist destinations on the Black Sea.

The attacks are aimed at slashing Moscow’s oil exports, a key source of funding for its grinding invasion of Ukraine. But the economic impact is so far unclear, as the rise in oil prices from the Iran war, and a related easing of US sanctions, have helped replenish the Kremlin’s coffers.

Still, the range of the attacks and their environmental impact is bringing the war home to ordinary Russians far from the front lines.

Oil is spilling onto the street

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Ukrainian drones have hit the oil refinery and export terminal in the Black Sea town of Tuapse on four occasions in just over two weeks, sparking fires that prompted local evacuations and sent up massive plumes of smoke. The town is roughly 450 kilometres (280 miles) from the front lines.

In a video posted by local Gov. Veniamin Kondratyev after the third attack on April 18, an emergency official said boiling oil products had spilt onto the street, damaging cars.

Ukraine said Thursday that it hit an oil pumping station in Russia’s Perm region, more than 1,500 kilometres (900 miles) from Ukraine, two days in a row. Russian media reported the attacks, though Perm Gov. Dmitry Makhonin said only that drones had hit industrial facilities.

Ust-Luga on the Baltic Sea, one of Russia’s largest oil and gas export terminals, was hit three times in the space of a week in late March. It is more than 800 kilometres (500 miles) away from Ukraine.

In a broadcast several weeks later, regional Gov. Alexander Drozdenko declared that the area around St. Petersburg, Russia’s second largest city, was a “front-line region” due to aerial threats.

Ukraine says the attacks have cost Russia billions

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Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has compared such strikes to the international sanctions on Russia. They are seen as even more crucial now that Moscow is collecting windfall profits from the global energy crisis linked to Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Zelenskyy said Friday that Russia has lost at least USD 7 billion since the start of the year as a direct result of attacks on its oil sector. Earlier in the week, he said Ukrainian intelligence indicates a drop in exports from key oil ports such as Ust-Luga and Primorsk.

Drone strikes have also disrupted Russia’s oil refining capacities, while sanctions make it difficult to acquire replacement parts, experts say.

But the full economic impact remains unclear as Russia benefits from the Mideast crisis.

Russian crude and oil product exports rose by 320,000 barrels per day month-on-month to hit 7.1 million in March, the International Energy Agency said. Rising prices meant that oil export revenues almost doubled, from USD 9.7 billion to USD 19 billion. It is unclear whether April’s strikes will disrupt that trend.

“US action against Iran has saved both the Russian oil sector and the federal budget from a crisis that was clearly developing in late February,” said Chris Weafer, CEO of Macro-Advisory Ltd. Consultancy.

The damage to Russia’s oil infrastructure has meanwhile been far less significant than the massive explosions would suggest, he said.

“If you hit an oil tank, particularly an oil tank that’s not full, the vapours ignite, and you get the flames. So it looks very spectacular.” But that only delays deliveries by a couple of days, he said.

“It’s much less damaging than hitting the pump stations or the compressors or the loading infrastructure. And that appears to be well protected. The tanks are not.”

Long-range drones stretch Russia’s defences

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The ability to strike key infrastructure deep inside Russia has highlighted Ukraine’s growing military capabilities and put pressure on Moscow’s overstretched air defences. It has also forced more Russians to confront the consequences of a war their government claims to be winning.

Ukraine’s Defence Ministry says its forces have more than doubled the range of their deep-strike capabilities since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. The increased range also allows drones to attack locations from different directions, complicating countermeasures.

“Drone attacks have so far been a very successful case of leveraging simple technologies and domestically assembled technology to attack Russia in places that, at the start of the war, they just would have never expected to be attacked,” said Marcel Plichta, a PhD candidate in the School of International Relations at the University of St Andrews.

“This capability just didn’t exist” four years ago, he said.

There could be long-term consequences

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Russian officials are usually reluctant to comment on deep strikes.

But the Tuapse attacks and the images that followed gained traction in Russian media. Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of “serious environmental consequences” while insisting things were under control.

Officials warned that high levels of benzene, a carcinogen found in oil products, had been recorded in the air while fires burned and urged residents to limit time outdoors.

Residents also widely reported “black rain,” oily droplets falling on their skin and clothes. Local news outlets posted images of stray dogs and cats with their coats stained grey. Oil spills along the coastline have coated birds and fish, and Russian media recently circulated images of beached dolphins.

Those images are shocking to Russians accustomed to vacationing on the Black Sea coast.

Vladimir Slivyak, co-chairman of the Russian environmental group Ecodefense, said there could be long-term consequences for human health and the region’s ecosystem.

“There is a lot of oil in the sea,” he said. “In the next few years, every storm will bring more oil pollution onto the coast.”

There has not yet been a public backlash to the strikes, as authorities wage a crackdown on dissent. But that could change as the damage spreads.

“I think a lot of people understand that there is a very big difference between what Putin says and what regional authorities are saying, and what’s really going on,” Slivyak said. (AP)

SINGAPORE, May 2 : The drowning of Indian singer-composer Zubeen Garg has brought the spotlight on rules and regulations that concern responsibilities of vessel operators when dealing with intoxicated passengers, according to a media report that cited legal experts.

A cultural icon in India’s northeastern region, 52-year-old Garg travelled to Singapore in September 2025 to perform at a live event. A day before his performance, he went on a yacht trip with a group of people. He drowned while swimming in the sea near Lazarus Island, which is a popular diving spot.

His death shook his home state Assam, where millions came out on the streets mourning. Later, police cases were registered against the organiser of the event, his manager and some others.

Nico Lee, managing director of the Triangle Legal law firm, told The Straits Times that Singapore has Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (Port) Regulations under which there are provisions to debar drunk passengers.

The owner, agent or captain of the vessel must not allow persons under the influence of alcohol or drugs onboard if they are intoxicated to a point where they endanger safety of the vessel, its crew or any person in it.

“In terms of civil liability, it could be argued that a yacht captain is negligent, as he owes a prima facie duty of care to guests on board under general negligence principles,” Lee was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

The singer and his entourage of about 15 individuals were partying on a chartered vessel, which they had boarded at Marina at Keppel Bay.

A death certificate issued by the Singapore General Hospital listed his cause of death as drowning.

An autopsy report suggested that Garg had 333 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood in his system, which was four times the legal limit for driving in Singapore and is likely to have impacted his coordination.

Citing Garg’s case, Lee said the circumstances were serious, as the controller of the vessel knew that the guest was intoxicated. Also, he may not have understood or processed a safety briefing for all passengers.

“That combination makes reliance on an ordinary briefing inadequate. If intoxication reaches a level that endangers the safety of the vessel or persons on board, the person in charge should not permit boarding at all,” he said.

According to Lee, the vessel’s operators could also have assigned a crew member to directly supervise him or ensure that he received a one-to-one explanation when he was capable of understanding.

Part of the responsibility could be attributed to the guest if he chose to enter the water and ignore instructions or behave dangerously despite the yacht owner or charterer’s best efforts, Lee said.

Vanessa Sandhu from Clifford Law LLP told The Straits Times that a key question is whether the yacht captain or operator owed a “duty of care” to the passenger and, if so, whether a breach of that duty caused the death.

“A yacht captain and operator generally owe passengers a duty to take reasonable care for their safety while on board, including swimming or water activities. This may include providing safety equipment and issuing appropriate safety instructions,” the daily quoted Sandhu as saying.

“However, the standard of care is an objective one, based on what a reasonable captain or operator would have done in the circumstances. It is not an absolute obligation to prevent all harm,” she said.

During the coroner’s inquiry, the operators of the vessel had said that no one had forced the singer to consume alcohol or enter the water, and that the entire entourage was informed on the yacht about the necessity of wearing life jackets before going for a swim.

A coroner’s inquiry on March 25 ruled Garg’s death as accidental drowning. On April 1, the police said that investigations into the singer’s death had concluded, with no evidence of foul play.

However, in Assam, where seven persons were arrested in connection with Garg’s case, and some of them charged with murder, the matter is being heard in the court. All the suspects have denied any wrongdoing. (PTI)

LONDON, May 2: Madame Tussauds launched a new “Icons of India” celebration at its London headquarters this week, uniting the wax models of celebrities from the world of cinema and cricket.

The limited-time experience includes 13 figures of leading Indian actors and cricketers within the leading British tourist attraction’s special Awards Party zone. For the month of May and June, the area has been transformed into a vibrant space inspired by Indian culture for visitors to get up close with some of the most its iconic wax figures including Amitabh Bachchan and Sachin Tendulkar.

“Bollywood’s global appeal is huge, and London’s love for Indian cinema and cricket grows stronger every year,” said Steve Blackburn, General Manager at Madame Tussauds London.

“With ‘Icons of India’, we are bringing fans closer than ever to the stars they love. We are thrilled to invite guests to step into this world of magic, capture unforgettable moments, and celebrate the icons who have shaped global entertainment and sport,” he said.

Describing it as a “truly global celebration”, some of the wax figures have made their journey to London on loan from other Madame Tussauds attractions, including Virat Kohli from Bangkok and Aishwarya Rai from New York.

The ‘Icons of India’ exhibit has been created to allow fans to strike a pose with their favourities, from Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh to Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Hrithik Roshan, Katrina Kaif and Madhuri Dixit.

The models of Ranbir Kapoor and Telugu cinema star Kajal Aggarwal have travelled from Madame Tussauds in New York and Singapore.

The High Commission of India in London backed the exhibition as a “vibrant celebration of the shared cultural affinity between our two nations”.

“Showcasing the global appeal of Indian cinema and cricket, this initiative brings the spirit of India to the heart of London while strengthening people-to-people ties, which stand as a testament to the enduring cultural bridge between India and the United Kingdom,” it stated.

Madame Tussauds in London dates back nearly 200 years and has since expanded to 24 locations around the world, including New York, Shanghai, Amsterdam and Sydney. It employs a combination of historic artistic methods, immersive sets and modern technology to create several lifelike figures from the worlds of royalty, cinema, sports, politics and more. (PTI)