The Russian Defense Ministry announced that this Sunday it had shot down a total of “70 Ukrainian drones”, almost half of which were in the Moscow region, in what is the biggest attack on the capital since the start of the conflict in 2022. Videos on social media show the damage caused by the wreckage.
In a note on Telegram, the Russian army advances and, in addition to 34 drones near the capital, nine drones were neutralized in the border regions of Kaluga and Tulae in three regions bordering Ukraine: 14 in Bryansk, seven in Oriol and six in Kursk.
The Russian command confirmed that the drones were shot down by air defense between 7am and 10am this morning (4am-7am in Lisbon).
“Last night, an attempt by the Kiev regime to conduct a terrorist attack against installations on Russian soil using fixed-wing UAVs was frustrated”, reads a note from the Russian Ministry of Defense, cited by the agency.
“Air defense forces intercepted and destroyed 23 Ukrainian UAVsincluding 17 over the Bryansk region, three over the Rostov region, two over the Belgorod region and one over the Kursk region,” the note adds.
Drones shot down over the districts of Ramenskoe, Domodedovo and Kolomna forced the temporary closure of Domodedovo international airport and the Zhukovsky military and civil airfield.
According to the Spanish agency EFE, explosions began to be heard at around 8:30 am south of the Russian capital, as a result of anti-aircraft fire and drone strikes.
The Baza channel on Telegram published several drone videos and reported that two houses in the village of Stanovoe, in Ramenskoe district, caught fire after falling fragments, which also damaged a car and injured one person.
In the Kursk region, the governor Alexei Smirnov reported that air defenses shot down five drones. According to , the wreckage of the drones landed in the city of Zheleznogorsk, causing a small fire on the roof of a building and on some dry grass, which was quickly extinguished. There were no injuries.
A video published on the Mash Telegram channel shows unconfirmed damage to the facade of a residential building, on a playground and on several cars.
In a post on YouTube, the AFP agency shows Russian emergency services workers, firefighters and police at the impact site of some of the wreckage, in the Moscow region, while the smoke rises of destroyed buildings.
While the Ukrainian capital Kiev is regularly the target of massive Russian drone and missile attacks, attacks on Moscow are much less frequenthighlights AFP.
A video published on X/Twitter by Euromaiden Press shows the moment one of the drones is shot down by Russian anti-aircraft defenses.
Heavy drone attacks are reported in Moscow and Moscow Oblast. Videos show one drone being shot down.
Three major airports — Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo, and Zhukovsky — have suspended flights. No comment yet from Ukraine.
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress)
After the end of the air alert, Rosaviatsia, the Russian federal agency for civil aviation, announced that the Domodedovo, Zhukovsky and Sheremetyevo airports resumed operations. According to the federal agency, 36 flights to these destinations were diverted during the drone attacks.
Os flights at Sheremetyevo airport, in Moscow, one of the five airports in the Moscow region and the largest in Russia, had been temporarily suspended during this Sunday morning.
Not totally, 36 flights were diverted to other routes during the time the airports are closed.
Previously, the Mayor of Moscow, Sergey Sobyaninit had already been said that the anti-aircraft forces of the Russian army had repelled an attack with at least 32 drones heading towards the capital Russian. “So far, 32 drones flying towards Moscow have been shot down,” the mayor said on Telegram.
Russia reports that it shoots down Ukrainian drones over its territory almost daily, but rarely target the Russian capital.
More than 1400 Russian bombs, drones or missiles
The Ukrainian President, Volodymir Zelenskystated today that Russia attacked Ukraine in the last seven days with more than 1,400 devices of air attack, including guided bombs, drones and missiles.
“This week, our air defense worked day and night to protect the skies of Ukraine from Russian terrorism,” Zelensky said in a message published on his Telegram channel, listing the systems that the Russian Federation used in its air strikes over the last seven days.
“This week, he used more than 800 guided bombs, nearly 600 drones attack and almost 20 missiles of various types”, added Zelensky, who also made a reference to the Russian attack that took place in the early hours of today.
In this drone attack, the Russian Federation used 145 devices. According to the Ukrainian air force, 62 of the drones were shot down.
Not total, “67 drones were lost in several regions of Ukraine” and “another 10 drones left Ukrainian airspace towards Moldova, Belarus and the Russian Federation”, said the Ukrainian authorities.
“Odessa and other regions suffered from the attack of the occupants. Apartment buildings and private properties were destroyed,” according to the military General Staff, adding that there was no loss of life and that assistance has been provided to the victims.
