Russian air defense shot down 70 Ukrainian drones, including 34 in Moscow Oblast, in Ukraine’s largest drone attack on the Russian capital, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on Nov. 10.
The drones entered Russian airspace between 7.00 and 10.00 a.m. Moscow time, the Defense Ministry said. Russia's air defense systems downed 34 drones over Moscow Oblast, 14 over Bryansk Oblast, seven each over Oryol and Kaluga oblasts, six over Kursk Oblast, and two over Tula Oblast.
Unverified social media accounts shared footage of drones flying over houses and subsequent damages, including a burning car. They could not be independently verified by the Kyiv Independent.
At least one person was reported injured in Moscow Oblast and Moscow’s Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said emergency services were working in the city.
Two of Moscow’s four airports, Domodedovo and Zhukovsky, ground to a halt due to the attack and threat of drones, according to Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency. Sheremetyevo International Airport was later closed, although flights have since resumed.
Russia launched its largest overnight drone attack on Ukraine on Nov. 9-10, with 145 drones entering Ukrainian airspace. Ukraine’s air defense shot down 62 drones.
An earlier Ukrainian drone attack damaged a Russian ammunition warehouse in Bryansk Oblast, according to the General Staff.
Ukraine has increased its drone attacks on Russia this year and UAVs destroyed or damaged 52,000 Russian targets last month, according to Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi.
"Drone technology is developing rapidly, and we must be one step ahead of the enemy," the general said on Nov. 9.
In the words of a Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) source that spoke to the Kyiv Independent on conditions of anonymity, an ammunition warehouse was "literally wiped off the face of the earth" in Tver Oblast last month.
This came just days after Ukraine confirmed attacks on two other arms depots, with the U.K. Defense Ministry said that the combined strikes caused "the largest loss of ammunition" in Russia during its all-out war against Ukraine.
The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk