Ukraine targets Moscow region in mass drone attack, oil depot reportedly hit

Ukrainian drones targeted Russia’s Moscow region overnight, reportedly striking an oil depot and a logistics facility, Russian Telegram channels reported on Monday.

Images and videos circulating on social media appeared to show thick black smoke rising over the city of Podolsk, about 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of the Kremlin, following an apparent strike on an oil storage site.

More than 400 drones targeted the Moscow region overnight, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said, adding that air defence systems intercepted most of them.

“From 8:30 pm (1730 GMT) until 5:00 am, more than 400 enemy drones were flying in the direction of Moscow region.

Most were neutralised by air defence forces at distant approaches. Eighty-five UAVs were destroyed on approach to Moscow,” Sobyanin wrote on the state-backed MAX platform.

Increasing strikes on Russian territory

Kiev has stepped up strikes on Russian territory in recent months, describing them as retaliation for more than four years of Russian attacks on Ukraine.

Separately, Russia’s TASSstate news agency reported that six people, including three foreign nationals, were hospitalised with blast injuries in the Moscow region.