Moscow hit by largest drone attack in three years, officials say

Saudi Gazette

11-03-2025

MOSCOW — At least three people have been killed — two in Moscow and one in Donetsk — and multiple injured as Russia and Ukraine traded fire ahead of talks on ending the war in Saudi Arabia.
Ukraine launched a "massive" drone attack on Moscow overnight, according to local officials.
The governor of the Moscow region, Andrei Vorobyov, said two people — including a 50-year-old man — were killed in Moscow in the attack.
He said the casualties were in the towns of Vidnoye and Domodedovo, located just outside the capital. Seven apartments were also damaged.
In a post on social media, Vorobyov posted pictures allegedly showing one of the damaged apartments alongside burnt vehicles in a car park. He added that over a dozen — including children — had to be evacuated.
Moscow's mayor Sergei Sobyanin said over 70 drones were shot down as they flew towards the Russian capital.
The roof of a building in Moscow also sustained damage in what Sobyanin said was the largest Ukrainian drone attack on the city in the three years of war between Russia and Ukraine.
In total, the Russian military said air defenses shot down at least 91 drones over the Moscow region. At least 337 Ukrainian drones were shot down over 10 Russian regions in total, the majority over Kursk.
Flights have been restricted in all four of Moscow's airports and two other airports in regions east of Moscow were closed. Traffic was halted through the Domodedovo railway station.
The governors of Ryazan, south-east of Moscow, and Belgorod on the border in Ukraine also said their regions came under attack, with Belgorod's regional governor saying several settlements lost power.
Ukraine also came under Russian attack overnight, with authorities saying one person was killed and four wounded in Russian attacks on the frontline towns of Pokrovsk and Kostyantynivk.
A 40-year-old cyclist was also injured in the city of Kherson after being targeted by a Russian drone in the morning, whilst one was injured and five residential homes damaged after the northern Sumy region was targeted by Russian drones.
Several buildings caught fire, including a fuel tank, a residential house and a warehouse of children's toys, according to local authorities in Odesa.
Overnight, Ukraine's air force posted on Telegram that it shot down an Iskander-M ballistic missile and at least 79 drones in various regions across Ukraine, including Kyiv.
The attacks come as representatives from the US and Ukraine meet in Saudi Arabia for crunch talks focused on ending the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Two senior Ukrainian officials told AP on Monday that the Ukrainian delegation would propose a ceasefire covering the Black Sea and long-range missile strikes, as well as the release of Ukrainian prisoners held in Russia.
US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who will be present at the talks said ahead of discussions that the US would be taking stock of Ukraine's proposals.
'I'm not going to set any conditions on what they have to or need to do. I think we want to listen to see how far they're willing to go and then compare that to what the Russians want and see how far apart we truly are,' Rubio told reporters ahead of his arrival.
"It's hard in the aftermath of something like that to even talk about concessions, but that's the only way this is going to end and prevent more suffering,' Rubio said, implying that Kyiv would have to consider or make concessions on its long-held ambitions for peace.
The US has cut off military aid to Ukraine as well as paused the flow of intelligence, although on Monday White House special envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed to Fox News that the intelligence pause did not impact intelligence needed for Ukraine's defence.
'We never shut off intelligence for ... anything defensive that the Ukrainians need,' Witkoff said.
The Ukrainian delegation will be represented by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's head of office, Andriy Yermak, the country's national security advisers, and several defense and foreign ministers.
Rubio will head the US delegation alongside Witkoff and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz. — Euronews