Russia Reports Downing Over 100 Ukrainian Drones in Largest Attack Since July

Russian authorities reported intercepting at least 126 Ukrainian drones overnight into Thursday, describing it as the largest drone attack on Russian territory since July 11. The Defense Ministry stated that drones were downed across 11 regions, including the annexed Crimea peninsula, and at least three were intercepted over the Moscow region.

Temporary flight restrictions were imposed at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport, Kaluga Grabtsevo Airport, and St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport, according to Artem Korenyako, spokesperson for Russia's federal aviation agency Rosaviatsiya. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin confirmed on Telegram that emergency services were responding to the wreckage of drones shot down near the capital.

Regional officials reported casualties and damage. In the Voronezh region, a drone crash injured three people after striking a residential building, according to Governor Alexander Gusev. In Belgorod, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said three people were killed and 17 injured in drone attacks from Wednesday into Thursday. Additional injuries were reported in the Smolensk and Kaluga regions.

Ukraine's air force said Russia launched 64 drones into Ukraine overnight, with 41 intercepted or neutralized. Twenty-three drones reportedly struck five locations. In Donetsk's Dobropillia city, local Governor Vadym Filashkin said the death toll from a Russian airstrike on a shopping center rose to four, with 27 others injured.

Both Russia and Ukraine have increased the scale of drone attacks in July amid stalled ceasefire negotiations. Russian Defense Ministry data indicated an average of 89 Ukrainian drones shot down daily so far in July, up from 79 per day in June. Ukrainian air force figures showed a rise in Russian drone and missile strikes since May, with daily averages reaching 239 drones and over five missiles in the first half of July.