MOSCOW, March 16 (Reuters) – Russia said on Monday that it shot down 250 Ukrainian drones heading towards Moscow over the weekend, in what officials said was the biggest attempted attack on the Russian capital in at least a year.
“Over the past two days, air defense forces have destroyed about 250 enemy UAVs directly on the approach to Moscow and on the second line towards Moscow,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram.
The war in Ukraine and now the Iran war have showcased the effectiveness of relatively cheap drones that can attack far-off targets ranging from oil infrastructure to major population centres at a fraction of the cost of a fighter jet.
Russia has pummeled Ukraine with artillery and drones while Ukraine has struck deep inside Russia with sabotage groups and drones, killing Russian generals and attacking oil refineries and oil pipelines.
Moscow’s main airports imposed flight restrictions amid the weekend attack, Russia’s aviation watchdog said, though they were later lifted.
There were no reported casualties. Sobyanin thanked the Russian armed forces for their work.
Reuters reporters said they heard loud bangs across Moscow and the Moscow region over the weekend.
Moscow – along with the surrounding Moscow region – has a population of about 22 million. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge in Moscow; Editing and Aidan Lewis)
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