Russia downs drones headed towards Moscow – Mayor
Two explosives-laden drones heading towards Moscow were successfully intercepted and shot down on Thursday morning. This was confirmed by Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin through his official Telegram channel, as well as Russia’s Ministry of Defense.
According to Sobyanin, the air defense systems were activated at around 4am local time. One drone was intercepted over Kaluga Region, and the other was shot down in the vicinity of the Central Ring Road.
The military added that nine more UAVs were suppressed by electronic warfare systems and crashed in the Black Sea. “As a result of the thwarted terrorist attacks, there were no casualties and no damage,” the ministry said.
At the same time, an auto repair shop in the suburban area of Domodedovo just outside of Moscow was engulfed in flames, consuming an area of approximately 1,000 square meters. The regional branch of the Ministry of Emergency Situations confirmed the incident. Eyewitnesses reported hearing explosions. The potential connection to the recently intercepted drones remains unclear.
Sobyanin previously reported that two drones had been downed just a day prior. The surge in drone attacks from Kiev has continued since late July.
On July 24, two drones targeted buildings on Komsomolsky Avenue and a business center on Likhachev Avenue. The Moscow mayor and the Ministry of Defense reported another thwarted attack on July 28.
Further attempts took place on July 30 and August 1 when drones reached the Moscow City business district. On July 30, a drone crash resulted in minor damage to the facades of two office towers within the IQ Quarter, which houses key ministries including the Ministry of Digital Development, the Ministry of Economic Development, and the Ministry of Industry and Trade. On August 1, a drone damaged the facade on the 21st floor of one of the towers.
Sobyanin announced on August 6 that the authorities had successfully thwarted another drone incursion into the capital. The drone was eliminated using air defense measures. The Ministry of Defense confirmed the attempted attack, revealing that Ukraine had planned to target objects within Moscow Region. The drone was neutralized in the Podolsk district without causing casualties or significant damage, according to military sources. Later, the mayor of Podolsk, Dmitry Zharikov, stated that several homes had experienced broken windows due to the incident.
In response to these attacks, Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian president, commented that Ukraine’s actions underscore the “nature of the Kiev regime.”
He stated that all measures were being taken to ensure security, adding that there were no plans to raise the threat level in Moscow.
