Ukraine has launched what Moscow authorities described as the largest-ever drone assault on the Russian capital, with strikes setting parts of a major oil refinery ablaze and leaving at least two people dead.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Russian air-defence systems intercepted about 450 drones approaching the capital on Saturday night, describing the attack as “unprecedented.”
Sobyanin alleged that the assault was timed to disrupt Russia’s three-day parliamentary elections, but said the attempt had failed.
Several drones reportedly struck the Moscow Refinery in the southern part of the capital, one of Russia’s major oil-processing facilities. Videos circulating on social media showed an explosion at the refinery, followed by thick black smoke and fires across parts of the facility.
A nearby power station, warehouse and market were also reportedly damaged.
Authorities said residential buildings near the refinery and at least 11 towns in the wider Moscow region were hit. Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov said two people were killed and 20 others injured, including three children.
The drone attacks also disrupted air travel, with flights suspended at Moscow’s three major airports.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces shot down a total of 1,110 Ukrainian drones across the country overnight.
The attacks came amid continued strikes by Russia and Ukraine against each other’s energy infrastructure, despite US President Donald Trump’s recent claim that both sides had agreed to halt such attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv used domestically produced drones and cruise missiles against facilities that he claimed generate billions of dollars supporting Russia’s war effort.
Zelenskyy said a proposal to de-escalate attacks on energy and food-export infrastructure remained “on the table”, but stressed that implementation would require political will.
Meanwhile, Russia’s parliamentary elections entered their final day on Sunday, with polls scheduled to close later in the evening.
The election is the first parliamentary vote since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Russia’s Central Election Commission reported voter turnout at 48 per cent by noon on Sunday.
The election has been dominated by Kremlin-aligned, pro-war parties, while the Supreme Court last month barred Yabloko, the only party on the ballot that had expressed even limited opposition to the war, from participating.
The conflict also continued inside Ukraine. Regional authorities in northeastern Sumy said a Russian drone destroyed a vehicle, killing four people.
Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia launched 138 drones overnight, with about half reportedly being jet-powered models considered more difficult for air-defence systems to intercept.
Zelenskyy said on Saturday that Ukraine’s State Security Service had successfully used a new interceptor drone to bring down Russian jet-powered drones, highlighting Kyiv’s growing reliance on domestically developed aerial defence technology.
