Black smoke blanketed the skies of southern Moscow on Thursday morning after Ukrainian drones struck and set fire to a major oil refinery, in what was the largest-ever attack on the Russian capital since the start of the war.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said around 6 a.m. local time that air defense systems were “repelling a large-scale attack” and that “several drones” managed to strike the Gazprom Neft-operated refinery located about 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) southeast of central Moscow.
Videos shared on social media showed huge columns of smoke and multiple large fires rising from the facility, which supplies around a third of Moscow’s gasoline and fuel. The refinery was also attacked on Tuesday, after which it reportedly halted operations.
Sobyanin said nearly 200 Ukrainian drones were intercepted during the early morning barrage, eclipsing the capital’s previous record attack in March of this year, when 74 drones were downed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called strikes “a fully justified response to Russian attacks on our cities and communities.”
“It is time the war ended, and Russia must take the necessary steps in diplomacy,” Zelensky wrote in a post on X.
Sheremetyevo Airport, Russia’s busiest airport, said it evacuated passengers to “safe locations” and suspended flights during the drone attack on Moscow. All major airports in the Russian capital later suspended operations.
Aeroflot and Rossiya airlines cancelled more than 170 flights to and from Moscow.
Flight restrictions were also imposed at airports in central Russia, including Kazan, where President Vladimir Putin was scheduled to meet Southeast Asian leaders at an ASEAN summit.
There was no immediate response from the Kremlin to Thursday’s attack.
In the Moscow region, a drone struck an apartment building, according to Governor Andrei Vorobyov. The impact damaged a fire escape and two balcony slabs, he said, though no one was reported injured.
Meanwhile, in the southern Rostov region, local authorities said one person was killed and two others were injured in Ukrainian attacks that damaged a diesel locomotive and set two buildings on fire.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said a total of 555 drones were intercepted across the country and annexed Crimea between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
Ukraine began ramping up its attacks against Russian oil refineries and supply lines this spring in a bid to deprive the Kremlin of windfalls from surging oil prices. Drone strikes have halted or scaled back production at facilities that account for large shares of Russia’s gasoline output.
In addition to attacking Russian refineries, Ukraine has been targeting fuel trucks that supply annexed Crimea, which has led to an acute gasoline shortage in the annexed peninsula.
Dozens of Russian regions have seen fuel rationing measures slowly introduced at gas stations in recent weeks. The disruptions arrive at a critical time, with both the summer vacation travel season and the agricultural farming season in full swing.
Industry sources told Reuters this week that Russia will import fuel from Asia by sea this month due to the shortages.
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