Drone attack on Moscow thwarted – mayor

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) sought to breach Russian air defenses and reach Moscow on Sunday, but was downed, Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said.

“A drone attempted to break though towards Moscow today, at around 11:00. It was destroyed by air defenses during the approach,” the mayor wrote in a brief statement on his Telegram channel, also thanking Russian military personnel for their work.

The mayor did not provide any further details on the incident. The type and the origin of the drone remain unclear. The UAV was destroyed to the south of the capital, in Moscow Region, the Defense Ministry said, adding that there were no casualties or damage on the ground.

The incident follows a series of drone attacks on Moscow in recent weeks, with multiple unmanned aircraft intercepted over Moscow’s financial district within a span of three days. Debris from the downed craft damaged two skyscrapers and injured one person.

Kiev has not openly claimed responsibility for the strikes, although Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky declared last Sunday that “war is returning to the territory of Russia.” 

The attacks on Moscow have been condemned by the UN, with the office of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling for an end to “any and all attacks on civilian facilities.”

Russia has called the raids “terrorist strikes” and blamed them on Ukraine.