Overview
- A large Ukrainian drone assault on Thursday targeted Moscow's Kapotnya/Gazprom Neft oil refinery and other sites, producing massive fires and propelling the roof of a storage tank high above the complex.
- Russian officials said emergency services contained much of the blaze and that 16–17 people were injured while four major Moscow airports temporarily grounded flights and hundreds of services were delayed or cancelled.
- Moscow's defence authorities gave varying tallies for intercepted aircraft, reporting hundreds of drones shot down nationwide and roughly 190–200 intercepted near Moscow, a discrepancy that independent sources cannot fully verify.
- Kyiv framed the operation as a justified response to recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities, while Ukrainian officials and analysts highlighted the use of a mix of propeller and jet‑powered long‑range strike drones to penetrate air defences.
- Russian leaders warned of 'massive' retaliatory strikes, raising near‑term escalation risks, and the attack renews debate over gaps in Moscow's air‑defence coverage and the strategic effect of Ukraine's expanding long‑range drone campaign.