On July 7, 2025, a Russian drone strike damaged buildings at National University Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic.

Photos from the university’s press service show damage to university buildings and dormitories, including shattered windows and structural impairments. There were no reported deaths or injuries on campus.

Scholars at Risk is concerned about military forces targeting higher education facilities during armed conflict. Parties to a conflict may only attack legitimate military targets; where a party suspects that a civilian facility — such as a university building — is being used for military purposes, that party has a duty to take every action practicable to verify that this suspicion is correct before initiating an attack. In the event of such an attack, parties must take all practicable precautions to avoid or minimize damage to civilian facilities. Further, parties must refrain from launching attacks which may be expected to cause disproportionate damage to civilian facilities.

Sources:
https://mezha.net/eng/bukvy/russian-drone-attack-damages-zaporizhzhia-polytechnic-university/
https://united24media.com/latest-news/zaporizhzhia-university-damaged-in-russian-uav-attack-that-injures-10-civilians-9662
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cmis.workshop/posts/1666312410858904/