Russia’s capital was hit by a wave of drones Tuesday morning, prompting the Kremlin to complain — apparently without irony — of a “terrorist attack”.
Moscow’s war in Ukraine made itself felt at home again this morning as a wave of drones attacked the Russian capital with air defences taking on what are described to be at least eight unmanned aerial vehicles. Moscow’s mayor said citizens woke up Tuesday morning to the sound of explosions across the city.
Law enforcement officers and investigators are seen outside a multi-storey apartment building after a reported drone attack in Moscow on May 30, 2023. (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
The Russian Ministry of Defence officially claims to have disabled or shot down the whole attack, although several buildings in Moscow were damaged early Tuesday, either by drones that snuck through Russia’s defences or by falling wreckage.
The drone attack, which appeared to closely resemble the now almost-nightly drone attacks launched by Russia against Ukrainian was a “Kyiv regime… terrorist attack”, Moscow thundered as they revealed the incursion. Ukraine, for its part, stuck to its usual policy of officially denying involvement but expressed pleasure at seeing it happen.
Russia’s account of the attack states of eight drones three were downed by electronic countermeasures and five by anti-aircraft fire.
State media released a flurry of statements on the attack in the hours after the blasts, insisting there were no casualties and no hospitalisations, and that the city’s airports were operating normally this morning. Damage to buildings in the city was “minor”, the official statements insisted.
MOSCOW, RUSSIA – MAY 30: Security Forces gather near damaged side aftermath of drone attack in Moscow, Russia on May 30, 2023. (Photo by Evgenii Bugubaev/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Images from Moscow in local media and social media show windows blown out, damaged facades, and some fire damage.
While today’s attack is defined by its rarity — Moscow was last struck by drones during an alleged attempt on Vladimir Putin’s life at the Kremlin earlier this month — Ukraine itself was again hit overnight by waves of air attacks which occur several times a week. Including drones and shelling, the Ukrainian government said in a statement Tuesday morning ten different regions of the country had been struck by Russian attacks in 24 hours.
Four civilians were killed nationwide in rocket, shelling, and drone attacks in the past day. A further four were injured in Kyiv overnight, they said, by falling debris from destroyed Iranian-made, Russian-deployed drones which hit buildings, starting fires.
Another difficult night for Kyiv. Now just hours passed between Russian attacks.
Russia launched 31 drones last night, from different directions, in waves, to make it more difficult for air defense. 29 drones were shot down.
A residential building was on fire when drone… pic.twitter.com/RLltZdcheD
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) May 30, 2023
KYIV, UKRAINE – MAY 30: An exterior view of a residential building hit by shelling on May 30, 2023 in Kyiv, Ukraine. The capital Kyiv got under a third Russian air attack in 24 hours. At least one person was killed in an early Tuesday strike, the Kyiv mayor said. (Photo by Oleksandr Gusev/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)