Moscow officials said air defences intercepted 16 Ukraine-bound drones over about 17 hours, with emergency teams reporting no damage after inspecting wreckage. Two of the capital's four main airports briefly limited operations. The Russian Defence Ministry also claimed 172 drones were destroyed overnight, while Ukraine said its drones struck a rubber plant in Tula and a marine-drone storage site in occupied Crimea. Claims from both sides remain subject to independent verification.
Moscow Says Air Defences Down 16 Ukraine-Bound Drones Over 17 Hours; Russia Reports 172 Destroyed Overnight
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Russian air defence units shot down 16 Ukrainian drones bound for the capital over roughly a 17-hour period on Wednesday, posting the updates on the Telegram messaging app. Emergency crews inspected fragments where some of the unmanned aerial vehicles fell, and Sobyanin said no damage was reported.
Russia's civil aviation authority said on Telegram that two of the four main airports serving Moscow temporarily limited some operations while the incidents were being handled.
Separately, the Russian Defence Ministry reported that its air defences destroyed 172 Ukrainian drones overnight, adding that nearly half of those interceptions occurred over regions that border Ukraine.
Ukraine's military said its drones struck the Yefremov synthetic rubber plant in Tula Region, south of Moscow, and a storage facility for marine drones in Russian-occupied Crimea. Tula Governor Dmitry Milyaev said debris from a downed drone sparked a fire at an industrial site but did not name the facility. He added that Russian air defence units destroyed 12 Ukrainian drones over the Tula region.
Kyiv has intensified drone operations deep inside Russia, saying it is targeting military, energy and logistics infrastructure to disrupt Moscow's war effort in response to Russia's continued strikes on Ukraine. Moscow has characterized the interceptions as part of ongoing efforts to protect critical infrastructure and population centers.
Note: The claims made by both sides have been reported by official sources and local authorities; independent verification of all specific strikes and damage was not available at the time of reporting.
(Reporting by Reuters. Editing and compilation by the newsroom.)
