By A woman was killed and three others injured in Ramenskoye, just outside Moscow, as Ukraine launched one of its largest drone attacks on Russian soil since the war began 2 1/2 years ago, Russian officials reported on Tuesday. The assault involved over 140 Ukrainian drones targeting multiple regions across Russia, including the capital and its surrounding areas.
Moscow region Governor Andrei Vorobyov confirmed that drones hit two multistory residential buildings in Ramenskoye, sparking fires and leading to the evacuation of five residential buildings due to falling debris. The attack claimed the life of one woman, marking a significant escalation in the conflict’s impact on Russian civilians far from the front lines.
The massive drone assault disrupted air traffic in the Moscow region, with authorities temporarily closing three major airports: Vnukovo, Domodedovo, and Zhukovsky. Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, reported that 48 flights had to be diverted to other airports during the attack, highlighting the widespread disruption caused by the incident.
In Moscow itself, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that drone debris fell on a private house on the city’s outskirts, though no injuries were reported in the capital. Sobyanin stated that air defenses intercepted over a dozen drones as they approached Moscow, underscoring the intensity of the attack and the response from Russian air defense systems.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have “intercepted and destroyed” 144 Ukrainian drones across nine Russian regions, including areas bordering Ukraine and those deeper within Russian territory. This attack follows a similar large-scale drone assault on September 1, where Russia reported intercepting 158 Ukrainian drones over more than a dozen regions.
This latest incident represents a significant escalation in Ukraine’s strategy of using drone attacks to disrupt Russian military operations and civilian life far from the front lines. It also highlights Ukraine’s growing capabilities in domestic drone production and deployment, a focus of their military development efforts.
The attack has prompted Russia’s Investigative Committee to launch a criminal investigation, describing the incident as a terror attack. Meanwhile, the conflict continues to rage along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, with intense fighting in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region and recent Ukrainian incursions into Russia’s Kursk border region.
As both sides continue to employ long-range strike capabilities, the war’s impact on civilians remains a grave concern. The United Nations reports that Russian attacks on Ukraine have killed over 10,000 civilians since the conflict began.
This latest drone assault on Russian territory marks a significant moment in the ongoing war, demonstrating Ukraine’s ability to strike deep within Russia and potentially shifting the dynamics of the conflict.
