Russia Says a Ukrainian Drone Was Shot Down Outside Moscow

A Ukrainian drone was shot down from the skies outside Moscow early Friday, Russia’s defense ministry said, marking the third drone incursion on the capital region this month.

No injuries or significant damage were reported.

Officials did not specify where the drone was downed, saying only that it was over the Moscow Oblast, a region surrounding the capital city.

As the war with Ukraine winds into its 18th month, Friday’s incident marks the third known Ukrainian use of drones in the Moscow region in July.

Two drones made it to Moscow on Monday, with one of them going down near the centrally located defense ministry headquarters, and the other hitting a nearby office building, gutting multiple floors.

And on July 4, four drones were shot down by air defenses and a fifth disabled by electronic warfare on the city’s outskirts, the Russian military said.

The conflict has demonstrated the increasing reliance on drones in warfare, with Russia also employing them for offensive strikes on Ukraine.

Meanwhile Friday, the office of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that at least one Ukrainian civilian was killed and another three wounded by Russian shelling of the Donetsk region over the past day. Another six civilians were wounded during Russian shelling of two other regions, Ukrainian officials added.

With Associated Press