Ukraine launched one of its largest drone attacks on Russia since the full-scale invasion, authorities said early Tuesday, targeting regions across the country, including near Moscow where one woman was killed after a drone smashed into an apartment complex.
The overnight attacks, which saw 144 drones destroyed over Russian territory, disrupted air traffic at several major airports and set off air defense systems around the country. In the Moscow region, 20 drones were destroyed.
Moscow region Governor Andrei Vorobyov said a 46-year-old woman was killed and three others were hospitalized in the town of Ramenskoye, around 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of the center of Moscow. It was the first reported death near the Russian capital from a drone attack since the start of the war.
In Ramenskoye, AFP reporters saw extensive damage to the 10th, 11th and 12th floors of a 17-story apartment block in which the woman was reported to have been killed. Around a dozen residents of the building could be seen nearby hoping to be allowed back in after firefighters put out a fire sparked by the strike.
In a major disruption of air traffic, four airports servicing Moscow — including key hubs Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo — canceled or delayed flights on Tuesday morning as a result of the attack, according to state media. The airport in the Tatarstan capital of Kazan, over 700 kilometers (435 miles) east of Moscow, also temporarily suspended service early Tuesday.
In the southwestern Bryansk region, which borders Ukraine, Governor Alexander Bogomaz said "the enemy carried out a mass terrorist attack," but added that "there were no casualties or damage."
The latest wave of Ukrainian drone attacks comes as Moscow continues to claim incremental gains in Ukraine's east, and as Kyiv's forces press on with their incursion into the Kursk region.
AFP contributed reporting.
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