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Hundreds of Drones Target Moscow on Final Day of Russian Elections
Confirmed
In Short: Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow and surrounding areas on the final day of Russia's parliamentary election, with Russian officials reporting deaths and injuries.
Ukraine launched a major drone attack on Moscow and surrounding areas on Sunday, the final day of Russia's parliamentary election. Russian officials reported that hundreds of drones were intercepted, with Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin describing the attack as unprecedented.
According to Sobyanin, Russian air defences intercepted 450 drones heading towards the capital. He said at least two people were killed, including a 44-year-old woman and an elderly man, and several drones reached the Moscow Oil Refinery.
The attack disrupted Moscow's four major airports — Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Zhukovsky, and Sheremetyevo — which were placed under temporary flight restrictions before operations resumed.
The drone assault came as Russians began voting on Friday in the country’s first parliamentary election since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Putin addressed the country on television, saying the election would demonstrate public support for Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine.
Russian officials accused Ukraine of attempting to interfere with the election. Sobyanin said Russian air defence forces had shot down more than 1,600 drones since Saturday, including around 450 that were reportedly heading towards Moscow.
A fire triggered by a drone crashing into a 21-storey building led to 400 people being evacuated, according to Moscow regional governor Andrey Vorobyov.
The attacks come at a time when Kyiv has stepped up its long-range drone strike campaign against Russia in recent months, particularly against energy infrastructure to target a vital source of the Kremlin’s revenue to fund its war effort.
Both sides claim they do not target civilians, but the unprecedented attack was clearly planned with the aim of disrupting the elections, according to Sobyanin.
Election authorities said Moscow’s online voting system came under a cyberattack, although there has been no independent confirmation that Ukraine was behind it.
What this adds
The exact number of drones intercepted remains unclear, with reports ranging from 1,100 to over 1,600 since Saturday.
What's confirmed
- A large-scale Ukrainian drone attack targeted Moscow and the surrounding region on Sunday, with Russian authorities reporting hundreds of drones intercepted as the country entered the final day of its parliamentary election.
What's still developing
- Reuters reported that the strikes on Russian refining facilities have contributed to disruptions in fuel supplies and higher prices in parts of the country.
- Both sides say they do not target civilians. [ Russians go to polls against backdrop of Ukraine war and Vladimir Putin’s tightening grip Opens in new window ] The latest strike comes after the US president, Donald Trump, said on Monday that Ukraine and Russia had agreed not to target each other’s energy facilities.