Ukraine has launched one of its largest drone attacks against Russia since the start of the war, killing at least six people and sparking a massive warehouse fire near Moscow.
Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had shot down at least 822 drones across the country overnight.
The attack set fire to a large warehouse belonging to Russian online retailer giant Wildberries, in Koledino, near Moscow.
Footage shows flames engulfing the structure and large plumes of smoke rising in the air.
Since mid-July, Ukraine has struck around 20 Wildberries warehouses and buildings, arguing its strikes are a response to Moscow’s bombardment of Ukrainian towns and infrastructure.
Moscow regional governor Andrey Vorobyov described the assault as “one of the most massive drone attacks in recent memory”, adding that six people were wounded in the region.
“In Podolsk, a UAV hit caused a fire at a Wildberries warehouse in the Koledino Industrial Park,” Mr Vorobyov added.
Russian strikes leave five dead in Ukraine
In Ukraine, a barrage of Russian drones and missiles killed two people and wounded 14 at a steel plant in Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hometown.
The plant, one of Ukraine’s biggest steel producers, said it partially halted operations after the strike damaged its core production facilities.
Another strike hit Kryvyi Rih on Sunday evening, killing one person.
Strikes also hit other regions, killing two people in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, one in the border region of Sumy and another in Donetsk in the east.
In Kyiv, a popular outdoor book market at Pochaina was also struck.
In a social media post on the overnight raid, Mr Zelensky said that “wherever the Russians can reach with their ballistic missiles, they strike civilian infrastructure”.
Over the past week, he said, Ukrainian cities had been pummelled by “more than 1,550 attack drones, nearly 1,560 guided aerial bombs, and 62 missiles”, as he renewed his appeal to allies for more air defence.
Spill over to Europe
Russia has maintained near-daily missile and drone strikes across Ukraine since launching its full-scale invasion in early 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine’s increasing attacks deep inside Russia, on refineries as well as the warehouses, aim to undermine Russia’s war economy.
Countries bordering the conflict have faced increasing spillover from the drone war between Ukraine and Russia.
NATO said Friday its fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Latvian airspace.
It was the second time in a week that a drone had been shot down in Latvian airspace, the country’s defence ministry said.
In July alone, 437 civilians were killed in Ukraine, the highest monthly toll since May 2022, according to a United Nations tally.
Russian authorities have reported 79 civilians killed on their side in July, up from the previous month.
– With AFP