Massive Ukrainian Drone Attack Hits Moscow as Russia Holds Parliamentary Election
An oil refinery in Moscow was damaged in a massive Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday, with videos showing thick smoke rising over the city.
In the village of Sofyino, south of Moscow, a body covered by a stained blanket was seen outside a damaged apartment building. Several of the building’s upper windows had been blown out.
“Glass went flying, people started screaming and shouting. I turned around and the entrance doors had already been blown out, debris everywhere,” resident Vitaliy, who gave only his first name, told reporters.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Russian air defenses had intercepted more than 1,600 drones since Saturday, including about 450 heading toward Moscow. He described the barrage as the largest drone attack on the capital to date and accused Ukraine of attempting to disrupt Russia’s parliamentary election.
“This unprecedented attack was clearly planned with the aim of disrupting the elections. The enemy did not succeed,” Sobyanin said in a Telegram post.
Moscow region Governor Andrey Vorobyov said a 74-year-old man in Orekhovo-Zuyevo and a 44-year-old woman in Ramenskoye were killed. Later reports said a third person died from injuries sustained in the attacks. Officials also reported numerous injuries and hospitalizations, including teenagers.
Ukrainian officials acknowledged that Ukrainian long-range weapons had struck targets in the Moscow region. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attacks hit what he described as a key Russian oil-industry facility and a logistics facility. Independent verification of individual targets remains difficult amid the ongoing war.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha also addressed the attacks in a post on X, writing that his morning had begun with congratulations from foreign colleagues on what he called “Moscow Burning Day.”
He added that, with the war reaching Russian territory, “the message to him is simple: look out the Kremlin window, see the flames over Moscow — and end this war.”
The attacks came as Russia entered the final day of its three-day parliamentary election, the first State Duma election held since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Russian authorities said voting continued despite the drone attacks.
At the same time, Russia continued its strikes on Ukraine. Ukrainian officials reported that three children and a woman were killed in strikes in the Kyiv region, although details of the attacks were still emerging.
Ukraine has increasingly demonstrated the ability to conduct long-range strikes deep inside Russia, targeting energy, military and industrial infrastructure. Moscow, meanwhile, has continued its extensive missile and drone campaign against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
The election is expected to preserve the political dominance of President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party. The vote has drawn criticism from Russian opposition figures and international observers over restrictions on political competition, the exclusion or imprisonment of opposition figures and the conditions under which the election is being conducted.
