Russia Shoots Down 2 Combat Drones Headed For Moscow, Says City Mayor Sergei Sobyanin

Russia struck down two combat drones on Wednesday that were trying to enter Moscow. The name of the attacker hasn't been disclosed yet.

Representational Image: Soldier holding machine guns pointing towards the sky to shoot down drones.

Source : Getty

Russia on Wednesday shot down two combat drones that were headed for Moscow, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on the messaging app Telegram. He said two combat drones attempted to enter Moscow, however, both were shot down by the air defence. News agency AFP reported that one of the drones fell in the Domodedovo area and the second one fell into the Minsk highway area. Mayor Sobyanin didn't disclose the name of the attacker though.

#UPDATE Russian forces have downed two combat drones headed for Moscow, the city's mayor says, the latest in a surge of drone attacks targeting the capital.

"Two combat drones' attempt to fly into the city was recorded. Both were shot down by air defence. One in the Domodedovo… pic.twitter.com/bnnrrsceN3

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 9, 2023

Earlier on Saturday, a Ukrainian marine drone carrying explosives targetted and weakened a Russian fuel tanker overnight near a bridge connecting Russia to Crimea. No one was injured in the attack but, according to Russian-installed officials in Crimea, the bridge and boat service was shut down for hours, reported the news agency Associated Press. A Kremlin-installed official in Ukraine’s partially occupied southern Zaporizhzhia region, Vladimir Rogov, however, said that a number of members of the crew were injured due to shattered glass. 

Following this attack, Moscow promised a strong retaliation. Ukraine also struck a major sea port for Russia during the said attack. Moscow strongly condemned the 'terrorist attack' on the civilian vessel in the Kerch Strait and Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that there was "no justification for such barbaric actions." She added that they (Ukrainian attacks) “will not go unanswered” and perpetrators will be punished. 

According to Ukrainian intelligence, the drone carrying 450 kg of explosives struck the SIG vessel when it was transporting fuel for the Russian troops in Ukrainian territorial waters.