One of Ukraine's largest ever drone strikes against Russia has killed at least four people and wounded a dozen more, Russian authorities said. Nearly 600 drones were launched across 14 regions, including the Moscow area, in what Moscow described as a massive attack.
Russian air defences shot down 556 drones overnight and neutralised another 30 after dawn, the defence ministry said. Three people were killed in the Moscow region and one in the Belgorod region, with several others wounded.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the strikes, saying drones had flown more than 500km from Ukrainian territory. He described the attacks as retaliation for Russia's deadly three-day assault on Ukrainian cities last week, which killed over 20 people and injured about 50.
In the Moscow region, a woman was killed in Khimki, north of Moscow, and two men died in the village of Pogorelki after drone debris hit a construction site, said regional governor Andrei Vorobyov. India's embassy confirmed one of its nationals was among the dead. In the capital, air defence intercepted over 80 drones, with 12 wounded and minor damage from debris.
Ukraine's SBU security service said an oil refinery and two pumping stations around Moscow were hit, reducing Russia's ability to continue the war. Russia's largest airport, Sheremetyevo, reported drone debris inside its perimeter but no damage. The Belgorod region also saw one fatality in a drone attack on a lorry.
The attacks come after a brief truce to mark the anniversary of victory in the Second World War, which both sides accused each other of violating. Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict remain at a standstill, with Ukraine unwilling to accept Russian territorial demands.
