Ukraine has carried out its most powerful strike on Moscow in a year, launching nearly 600 drones overnight in response to the strikes on Kiev. The attack on the outskirts of the capital lasted from Saturday night to Sunday morning, The Telegraph reports.
The publication notes that according to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, three people were killed as a result of the shooting down of 586 drones over Russian territory.
According to Russian state media, this was the largest strike on the area in the past year. Explosions were heard not only in the region, but also in the center of the Russian capital.
The article mentions that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had instructed the military to prepare proposals on “possible formats for our response“ of the Russian strike on Kiev, which killed 24 people and injured about 50 on Thursday.
Ukrainian drones are reported to have struck Russia's busiest airport, Sheremetyevo Airport.
“According to an analysis of the strikes published on local television channels, Kiev was likely targeted at an oil refinery, a facility for the production of cruise missiles and other missile systems, a gas station and a technology park,“ the publication reports.
It is noted that Ukraine's long-range strikes usually target infrastructure targets, such as factories and oil refineries, logistics facilities and air defense systems.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the strikes in a statement on Sunday.
“Ukrainian long-range strikes have reached the Moscow region, and we are clearly saying to the Russians: their country must end the war. The largest number of Russian air defense systems is concentrated in the Moscow region. But we are overcoming them“, Zelensky wrote, adding a video showing Ukrainian drones flying over the region, with smoke rising from the explosion sites.
The commander of Ukraine's unmanned aerial forces, Robert Brody, posted an image of a drone on Telegram with the caption “Moscow never sleeps“.
“The one-way pass to peaceful life in Patriki and the surrounding area has been canceled“, he wrote in the caption, referring to the elite Moscow district of Patriarch's Lakes.
According to local authorities, three people were killed in the attacks in the villages of Khimki and Pogorelki, located north of the capital. Drone debris also fell on the territory of Sheremetyevo Airport, the country's busiest aviation hub.
In the village of Subbotino, southwest of Moscow, drone debris fell on a house, causing a fire. Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov posted a photo of a house completely engulfed in flames.
Also in Istra, a town 25 miles west of the capital, four people were injured by drones and residential buildings were damaged.
According to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, 12 workers were injured in the explosion at the Moscow Oil Refinery, although “production was not interrupted“.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, drones were also shot down in 14 other Russian regions, as well as in occupied Crimea. One person died in Belgorod - a border region where drone strikes and artillery shelling are common.
At the same time, the publication recalled that the Russian strike earlier this week set a record for the war: nearly 1,500 drones were launched into Ukrainian territory in 24 hours, and during the night a cruise missile hit a nine-story apartment building in Kiev, causing it to collapse.
The media reports that as rescuers pulled bodies from the rubble, The Telegraph correspondent witnessed hundreds of people eagerly awaiting news about the fate of their friends, neighbors, classmates and family members.
The following day was declared a day of mourning in Kiev, and people from all over the city came to the site to lay flowers and teddy bears - in honor of the three children who died.
The bloodshed was followed by several rounds of retaliatory strikes launched by Ukraine against Russia. On Saturday, Zelensky said his army had destroyed a rare amphibious aircraft deep behind the front line.
The publication noted that as concerns grew about Kiev's long-range strike capabilities, Russian President Vladimir Putin had introduced new restrictions prohibiting any media outlet, organization or individual from publishing information about the aftermath of the strikes on Russian territory without official permission.
The new law, which is intended to remain in effect indefinitely, would impose fines on anyone who publishes text, photos or videos depicting the aftermath of the attacks.
It should be noted that this is the result of a widespread wave of internet restrictions imposed by the Kremlin, including shutdowns, restrictions on non-state social media and messaging apps, and attempts to ban VPNs.
“Russian authorities have generally not publicly disclosed the scale of the Ukrainian attacks, and many rely on Telegram and other social media channels to receive and distribute news and video,“ the publication notes.
On Friday, a poll published by the “Public Opinion“ Foundation, a research institute owned by the Kremlin, found that most Russians are more concerned about Ukraine's long-term offensive campaign than about developments on the front line.
Source: www.unian.net