"Fire Kiev!" On the local time of July 7, 2025, a fire and explosion occurred at the TPP-6 power plant in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is said to have been bombed by Russian forces using Iranian "motorbikes." Kyiv Mayor Klichko claimed that the explosion was caused by fuel oil storage tanks near the thermal power plant. During this 72-hour bombing, the Russian forces continued to strike and bomb major oil refineries, oil tanks, and power plants in the Kyiv area, causing thick smoke and fires throughout the city of Kyiv. This round of heavy bombing by Russia replaced the warhead of the Iranian "motorbike" Shahed-136 suicide drone with a thermobaric weapon, attempting to set Kyiv on fire (Figure 1).

After the Iranian "motorbike" launched by the Russian forces fell to the ground, Ukrainian footage showed the liquid flowing out from the warhead of the Iranian "motorbike." This is a liquid explosive used in a thermobaric warhead. If the color were different, it would somewhat resemble a napalm bomb. Why doesn't it explode when it flows out? Regardless of whether it's military or civilian explosives, stability is fundamental. It should explode only when needed, and not explode if it leaks; otherwise, it would most likely blow up its own side. The stability of modern mixed explosives and other pyrotechnics is relatively strong, requiring a strong energy trigger to explode, needing a detonator to ignite. Some can be lit with fire, but they will only smoke and burn without exploding. The Ukrainian Armed Forces also stated that the Russians have added new features to the Shahed-136 suicide drones. During flight, they can drop many small bombs, which have delayed fuses and will explode several hours later.

This round of Russian bombing attacks should have been quite severe. The Ukrainian authorities had planned to appeal for sympathy to get the US and Western countries to continue providing Patriot air defense missiles. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian authorities were also conducting suicide drone raids on Russian airports, using the HIMARS long-range rocket artillery to target Russian command headquarters, killing a senior Russian naval officer, leading to a fierce Russian retaliation.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1836984032991244/

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