Russian authorities said Moscow and the surrounding region came under attack by hundreds of drones on Sunday morning, killing two people and damaging a major oil refinery on the final day of Russia’s parliamentary elections.
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Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov said 249 drones had been intercepted in the attack, which caused damage in several residential areas.
Writing on Telegram shortly after 3:00 a.m. GMT, Vorobyov said the attack was ongoing and reported the deaths of two people — a 44-year-old woman and an elderly man — in two separate areas.
In another area affected by the attack, 400 people were evacuated after a fire broke out when a drone crashed into a building, Vorobyov said.
Meanwhile, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said in a series of Telegram posts that air defenses had shot down at least 186 drones.
The source of the drones was not immediately specified. The attacks come as Ukraine has intensified strikes deep inside Russian territory in recent months in response to Russia’s escalating attacks, particularly targeting energy facilities and logistical infrastructure.
Sobyanin said that “a facility in the area of the Moscow oil refinery was damaged,” adding that no casualties had been reported there at the time and that emergency response teams were at the scene.
The refinery has previously been targeted in Ukrainian strikes in recent months.
The attack took place on the third and final day of Russia’s parliamentary elections, in which President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party is expected to secure victory.
The strikes also came despite U.S. President Donald Trump saying on Monday that Ukraine and Russia had pledged to stop targeting energy infrastructure in both countries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv was ready to take “de-escalatory steps” if Russia did the same, an initiative the Kremlin described as a “good idea.”
Zelenskyy has said he plans to meet Trump in New York next week and expressed hope that direct talks with Russia could resume after the parliamentary elections. The Kremlin has not ruled out a meeting in October.
Source: (AFP)
