Moscow attacked by waves of drones – mayor
Sixteen Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow were shot down by air defenses on Saturday, according to Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.
The mayor’s Telegram channel reported incursions by one or several UAVs almost every hour on Saturday. Emergency workers have been deployed to the areas where the debris of the destroyed drones fell, according to Sobyanin.
Moscow’s Domodedovo and Zhukovsky international airports temporarily halted flights amid the drone raids, according to Russia’s federal air transport agency, Rosaviatsia.
The Russian Defense Ministry said later in the day that a total of 87 Ukrainian UAVs had been shot down inside Russia since Friday evening. Besides Moscow Region, interceptions also took place in Smolensk, Belgorod and Kursk regions.
The last reported drone attack on the Russian capital was on March 8, when six drones were destroyed, according to the mayor.
The Kremlin has repeatedly said that Kiev is targeting civilians because it cannot halt Russian advances on the battlefield. Ukrainian officials say causing significant economic damage could force Russia to abandon its objectives in the four-year conflict.
In response to attacks on Russian civilians, Moscow has struck Ukrainian energy infrastructure it says supports the production of long-range kamikaze drones.
