In what officials describe as the largest Ukrainian drone operation against the Russian capital yet, nearly 200 unmanned aerial vehicles swarmed Moscow, sending thick plumes of smoke across the city’s skyline.
Local authorities confirmed that 17 people were wounded in the Moscow region, while the Russian Defence Ministry reported that, during a 24‑hour period, close to 1,000 drones and four Ukrainian cruise missiles were intercepted and destroyed nationwide.
The raid also struck an oil depot in the southern Rostov region, killing a single worker, and targeted the Kapotnya refinery in south‑eastern Moscow for the third time in a month. Explosions at the refinery set nearby shopping centres aflame, prompting the evacuation of several residential high‑rise blocks.
In response to Moscow’s own strike on a Ukrainian religious site last week, President Volodymyr Zelensky labeled the Ukrainian drones the “long‑range sanctions” and urged Russia to take diplomatic steps to end the conflict.
The attack caused a temporary shutdown of all four Moscow airports and led to more than 500 flights being cancelled or delayed.
Despite a ban on publishing images of the aftermath, dozens of social‑media videos circulated, showing drones in daylight and explosions over industrial areas on Moscow’s outskirts.
Globally, Kyiv’s long‑range strikes have become more frequent as the war has evolved into a war of attrition. The Russian side has bolstered its air‑defence around Moscow, while Ukraine has increased its drone and missile arsenal, with some craft overcoming the defenses.
Presidential leader Vladimir Putin has not commented on the attack, remaining engaged in a diplomatic summit in Kazan. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha expressed on X, “What is going on?” to Moscow residents, urging them to question Putin’s plans for ending the war.
