Moscow suffers drone attack

Early this morning (May 30) several Ukrainian drones attacked Moscow, in apparent revenge for a similar attack on Kyiv. This is actually the second such attack, but many consider it more serious because civilian buildings suffered damage this time.

The Moscow attack

The first report of an attack on Moscow came on Twitter, with this tweet at 1:20 a.m. EDT. This corresponds to 8:20 a.m. Moscow Time, since Russia no longer observes any “Summer Time”:

The Mayor of Moscow confirmed the attack, and damage to apartment developments, according to the tweet. Other reports came in from USA Today, Reuters, and The New York Times, among other organs. At least eight drones flew into Russia, intending to hit targets in Moscow and its outskirts. The Russian Defense Ministry reported that they intercepted all the drones, by jamming or by shooting them down. The ministry did not specify or speculate on the intended targets – and neither did anyone else. Reuters, however, said the attacks hit the “wealthier districts” of Moscow. President Vladimir Putin and some of the oligarchs have residences in those districts.

The Mario Nawfal tweet above has six seconds of video showing what could be a drone exploding from anti-aircraft fire. A 25-second video from The New York Times shows slight damage to an apartment building. An outside wall appears scorched, and the video shows workmen doing preliminary cleanup of part of that wall. Or they could be taking samples for forensic analysis.

If Putin and/or any oligarchs were targets, this would be the second such attempt. The first attempt came May 5 with a drone strike on the Kremlin, that cause minimal damage and no casualties. That attack apparently staged out of Ukraine, but who gave the order, remains unclear.

The debate starts

Casualties seem to be limited to two minor injuries requiring some sort of medical attention. Damage is limited to three apartment buildings, according to the Russian prosecutor general’s office – damage occurring after the interceptions.

This tweet,

could indicate speculation that the U.S. military or intelligence apparatus set up this latest attack.

Note: the featured image is of a typical apartment building in Moscow. A local resident uploaded the photograph. That building is not one of the three damaged buildings. – Ed.