Ukraine war: Flights were disrupted at Moscow’s main airport due to a drone attack

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By Catherine Armstrong, BBC News, Jul 4, 2023, 07:43 GMT

Updated 13 minutes ago

photo caption,

Some flights were diverted to Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport due to what Russia described as a Ukrainian drone attack (file photo)

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Ukraine launched a drone attack on Moscow, diverting flights from Vnukovo International Airport.

Five drones were reportedly used in Tuesday’s attack, which also targeted sites in the wider area around the capital.

The Ministry of Defense said that all the drones were shot down, and there were no injuries or damage.

Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the alleged attack.

Restrictions at Vnukovo Airport, one of Moscow’s three international airports, have now been lifted. Flights from Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt were among those affected.

According to the Ministry of Defense, four drones flying in the Moscow region were shot down by air defense systems. A fifth plane was electronically intercepted before it crashed.

“The Kiev regime’s attempt to attack an area where there is civilian infrastructure, including an airport that receives international flights, is a new terrorist act,” Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, said in a Telegram.

Russian state media said one of the drones crashed in the town of Kubinka, about 36 km from Vnukovo Airport, in the southwest of the city.

Another plane was reportedly shot down near the village of Valuevo, near the airport.

The BBC is attempting to verify this information independently.

Ukraine denied responsibility for both incidents.

Meanwhile, the death toll from a Russian drone attack on the northern Ukrainian city of Sumy on Monday rose to three, according to the local mayor. Several other people were injured.

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