June 22 (Reuters) – Moscow shot down dozens of drones within the early hours of Monday and briefly suspended flights at airports, authorities within the Russian capital mentioned, simply days after Ukraine hit town’s oil refinery once more.
Ukrainian authorities mentioned Russian drones had hit civilian service provider vessels, killing an Egyptian crew member, whereas drone assaults elsewhere killed not less than 5 folks, together with three members of the identical household in Ukraine’s northern Sumy area.
Practically 60 drones headed for Moscow have been downed, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin mentioned on Telegram. He mentioned emergency companies had been dispatched to the areas the place drones have been downed however gave no additional data.
The airports of Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo and Vnukovo, in addition to Zhukovskiy close to the Russian capital, had suspended flights, although they have been later resumed, the aviation watchdog mentioned individually.
In whole, Russian defence techniques downed301 drones in a single day, native newswires mentioned, citing the defence ministry. That tally included Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.
The most recent assaults come after drones once more hit Moscow’s sole oil refinery final week, in one of many largest air assaults on town since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The drone assault early on Monday in Ukraine’s Sumy area killed a 13-year-old boy, his 36-year-old father and 73-year-old grandmother, whereas the boy’s mom and two siblings have been injured, regional prosecutors mentioned.
Within the southeastern Ukrainian metropolis of Zaporizhzhia, a girl was killed and three different folks injured after a drone assault, Ivan Fedorov, the native governor, mentioned on Telegram on Monday.
Russia additionally hit the southern Odesa area with an Iskander ballistic missile on Sunday night, killing one and injuring three folks, regional governor Oleh Kiper mentioned on Telegram. Autos and gas storage tanks caught fireplace after the strike hit an agricultural facility, he mentioned.
Elsewhere, town of Sevastopol in Russia-annexed Crimea cancelled all open-air public occasions on Monday and can preserve road lights switched off, its governor Mikhail Razvozhayev mentioned, as he known as on folks to curb electrical energy utilization.
Crimea, a preferred vacationer vacation spot for Russians, has suspended gas gross sales to the general public and companies, with provides restricted to authorities companies accountable for important companies and safety, as Ukraine’s drone assaults on its provide routes and vitality services elsewhere led to a gas disaster.
THREE VESSELS UNDER RUSSIAN DRONE ATTACK
Russian drones hit a Turkish dry cargo vessel, the Victress, which was crusing below the Panamanian flag, Ukraine’s navy mentioned. Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba mentioned a 58-year-old Egyptian cook dinner was killed and eight different crew members, together with Turkish and Indian nationals, needed to evacuate on a lifeboat.
The vessel sustained important harm, Kuleba mentioned on Telegram. The operator of the Victress, Turkey’s Rana Denizcilik in accordance with LSEG information, couldn’t instantly be reached for remark.
Kuleba mentioned vessels working below the flags of Palau and Belize additionally got here below assault in a single day, however no person was harm and the vessels resumed their journey.
Russia has repeatedly focused Ukraine’s maritime export routes, placing vessels and ports important to international commerce and the wartime financial system.
(Reporting by Jekaterīna Golubkova in Tokyo and Anna Pruchnicka in Gdansk; Modifying by David Dolan and Gareth Jones)
