Video shows Russian drone hunting down Ukraine street vendor, as civilian attacks appear to increase

A horrific video circulating online appears to show a low-flying drone circling around a Ukrainian street vendor as he runs around his vehicle searching for cover. The Russian drone then dives down and explodes directly in front of him.

​The 52-year-old man narrowly survived the attack, suffering shock and shrapnel injuries, according to officials.  

​The video was posted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday, stating, “The world must see this. It must see every piece of evidence that Russia has gone mad and that its soldiers take pleasure in killing and abusing civilians.”

The video surfaced as Russia intensified its air assault on Ukraine, launching a deadly overnight missile and drone attack on Kyiv and the surrounding region that killed at least 17 people and injured about 40 others.

Following the attack, Zelensky urged Western allies to bolster Ukraine's depleted air defenses.

"We are working to the fullest extent with all partners who can assist with supplying interceptor missiles to protect against such utterly unjustified Russian strikes against civilian life, people, and civilian infrastructure," Zelensky wrote in an X post Wednesday.

Wednesday marked 1,622 days since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In recent days, the director of a Russian drone factory was badly injured in car explosion, and at least seven people were killed on a popular Russian beach by a drone that Russian said was launched by Ukraine.