At least four people were killed, including three in the Moscow region, after Ukraine launched what Russian authorities described as the largest overnight drone attack on the Russian capital in more than a year.
Local officials said another victim was killed in Russia’s Belgorod region, which borders northeastern Ukraine.
Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed that more than 1,000 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted and destroyed across the country within the past 24 hours.
The large-scale assault came days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed retaliation following Russia’s recent massive missile and drone strikes on Kyiv, described as among the heaviest attacks since the war began over four years ago.
Zelenskyy later shared footage on social media showing drones in flight, heavy smoke and emergency crews responding to fires caused by the strikes.
“Our responses to Russia’s prolongation of the war and attacks on our cities are fully justified,” he said.
The Ukrainian leader also claimed that Kyiv was capable of striking targets located more than 500 kilometres from the border despite Russia’s strong air defence systems around Moscow.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military General Staff said one of the strikes triggered a fire at a facility outside Moscow believed to be involved in the production of high-precision weapons.
It also claimed a separate attack hit a command centre overseeing drone operations in Russian-occupied Donetsk.
Russian authorities accused Ukraine of targeting civilians during the operation.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described the strikes as a “mass terrorist attack”, according to state news agency TASS.
Both Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly denied deliberately targeting civilians throughout the conflict.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Russian air defences intercepted 81 drones heading towards the capital since midnight, marking the biggest drone assault on Moscow in over a year.
He added that 12 people were injured, most of them near Moscow’s oil refinery area, while several homes and infrastructure facilities suffered damage.
Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyov said one woman was killed after a residential home in Khimki was struck, while two men died in the village of Pogorelki in the Mytishchi district.
Authorities also confirmed that debris from intercepted drones fell within the grounds of Sheremetyevo Airport, although no damage was reported.
