At least three Russian regions were targeted in overnight drone strikes, including the site of Russia’s central command center for its military campaign in Ukraine, officials and media reported Thursday.
Two drones were shot down by air defense systems in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don, some 60 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, according to Rostov region Governor Vasily Golubev.
Rostov-on-Don houses the command center for Russia’s joint group of forces in Ukraine.
Three buildings were damaged and one person received minor injuries, Golubev said.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reporter Mark Krutov geolocated the damaged buildings, showing a map of the nearby Southern Military District headquarters of the Russian Defense Ministry.
Video shared on social media showed a powerful blast ripping through central Rostov-on-Don, while images showed what was described as one of the downed drones.
Meanwhile, another drone was shot down in the Moscow region’s Ramensky district on approach to the Russian capital from the southeast, according to Mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
There were no casualties or other damage at the site of falling debris, he said. Unconfirmed reports suggested explosions have blown out windows in nearby buildings.
Moscow has been targeted by a barrage of Ukrainian drone attacks in recent weeks after Kyiv vowed in July to «return» the war to Russia.
Three more drones were destroyed in the Bryansk region near the Ukraine border, Governor Alexander Bogomaz said.
Also, on Thursday morning, five villages in Russia’s Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine were targeted by Ukrainian artillery, according to Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov.
The latest spate of drone and artillery strikes on Russian territory follows the largest wave of drone attacks across seven Russian regions last Friday.