Ukraine reportedly attacked a Russian oil refinery and targeted Moscow in an attack carried out by at least 121 drones, the largest operation of its kind during the war.
Video verified by the BBC showed a fireball rising over an oil refinery and pumping station in the Ryazan region southeast of Moscow, which Ukrainian officials said was the target.
Russia said it had shot down 121 drones, targeting 13 regions including Ryazan and Moscow, but no damage was reported.
Elsewhere, Ukrainian authorities said a Russian drone hit a residential building in the Kiev region, killing three people and injuring one.
Andriy Kovalenko, director of Ukraine’s Counter-Disinformation Center, said on Telegram that an oil refinery in Ryazan was hit, as well as the Kremny factory in Bryansk, which Kyiv said produced missile components. and other weapons.
Bloggers on Telegram posted images and videos of raging fires at the Ryazan facility, which covers about 6 square kilometers (2.3 square miles). Verified video showed people fleeing the scene in cars and on foot as the fireball rose into the sky.
BBC verify used video footage to pinpoint the location of two fires at the refinery. A video shows a fire near the north entrance, its location matching the road layout, signs and fencing.
Two other videos showed a larger fire on the east side of the refinery, about 3 kilometers (1.6 m) away from the first fire. The location is determined by matching trees, towers, roads and path layouts.
Russian state news agency RIA quoted a statement from the Bryansk Kremny factory saying work had been suspended after being attacked by six drones. Regional governor Pavel Markov said emergency services were responding.
The Kremlin acknowledged the attacks but made no mention of damage or casualties.
It claimed to have destroyed 121 Ukrainian drones, including six over the Moscow region, 20 over the Ryazan region, and some over the Bryansk border region.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said the city’s air defense system had intercepted Ukrainian drone strikes at four locations.
He said air defense systems southeast of the capital Kolomna and Raminskoye also repelled the drones, but did not specify how many. He said there was no damage.
Russian news agencies quoted the Federal Aviation Administration as saying that Moscow’s Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports have resumed flights after suspending operations for a period. Six flights were diverted to other airports.
Kursk Mayor Igor Kuchak said the overnight attack damaged power lines and cut power to an area.
Ukrainian officials said Ukrainian air defense systems destroyed 25 of the 58 drones launched by Russia overnight.
The interior ministry said debris from a drone killed two men and a woman and injured another person in Khlevka, Kyiv region.