Moscow suffers biggest Ukrainian drone attack in 2 years

Moscow, Aug 18 (IANS) Moscow came under the largest Ukrainian drone attack in two years, with 620 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) targeting the Russian capital, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said on Tuesday.

“From yesterday evening until 5:00 a.m. today, 620 UAVs were flying toward the Moscow region. Of these, 180 drones were destroyed,” Sobyanin said, adding that emergency crews were working at the debris sites. No casualties or major damage were immediately reported.

In response to the aerial threat, flight operations at Moscow’s Vnukovo, Zhukovsky and Domodedovo airports were temporarily halted, while Sheremetyevo Airport operated under partial restrictions, reports Xinhua news agency.

The previous record for a drone strike on Moscow was set on Sunday night, involving some 600 UAVs.

Earlier on August 12, three were killed and eight others injured in a Ukrainian drone strike on Russia’s Novorossiysk city. Krasnodar Governor Veniamin Kondratyev confirmed the news.

Novorossiysk Mayor Andrei Kravchenko declared a state of emergency after the strikes damaged several educational facilities and ruptured two water mains, disrupting supplies to the city.

One main has been repaired, while work continues on the other, he said.

Authorities in other Russian regions also reported civilian casualties. In the Belgorod region, two people were killed and three others injured in drone strikes over the past 24 hours. In the Russia-controlled Luhansk region, one child was killed, and a teenager and seven adults were wounded. In Crimea, one person was killed.

The strike targeted Russia’s naval base in Novorossiysk, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday.

The naval base is key for the Russian fleet in the Black Sea. According to Zelensky, air defence positions, piers and seaport infrastructure were hit.

–IANS

sd/