The Russian Defence Ministry said that 249 Ukrainian drones were downed over Russian regions overnight, including 116 over the Black Sea, 92 over the southern regions of Krasnodar and Rostov.

Rostov Governor Yuri Slyusar said that a paint shop, a warehouse, four apartment buildings and 12 houses were damaged in the attack, which left at least three dead.

Unverified video footage on Telegram showed what sounded like a drone flying directly into a large residential apartment block in Novorossiysk - home to a major oil port - and exploding in a ball of flame.

“Overnight, the Krasnodar region was subjected to one of the longest major attacks by the Kyiv regime,” Krasnodar Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said, adding that an apartment building at Tuapse, a town beside an oil export terminal, had been damaged.

He said that seven apartment buildings had been hit in Novorossiysk.

Russian forces attacked Kyiv early on Tuesday, triggering fires in at least two residential buildings and killing one person, a senior Ukrainian official said.