The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified sharply. Even as it continues to face Russian attacks, Ukraine has stepped up its own offensive, launching a massive assault involving more than a thousand drones on Russia from Saturday midnight through early Sunday morning. The attacks targeted several locations across the Russian capital, Moscow. Russia confirmed the attacks, with its Defence Ministry stating that it had effectively repelled Ukraine’s assault and shot down around eight hundred of the drones.
Ukraine’s attacks triggered a massive fire near a Moscow oil refinery, sending thick plumes of smoke into the air. Six civilians reportedly lost their lives in the attacks, with dozens more injured. As Ukraine intensified its strikes, major airports across Russia were shut down and several flights cancelled, while others ran with delays, according to the country’s aviation authorities.
Notably, Russian media reports described this as one of the largest attacks Kyiv has carried out on Moscow in the five years of the ongoing war between the two countries. Ukrainian media reported that Ukraine has also continued large-scale attacks on Crimea, with its latest strikes said to have targeted military supplies and power systems there, reportedly disrupting them. Ukraine also said it had struck missile systems located in Crimea. Meanwhile, in apparent retaliation for Ukraine’s attacks, Russia launched drone strikes on several parts of Kyiv in the early hours of Sunday, with a number of homes and shops reportedly catching fire as a result.