The Russian capital of Moscow was once again the target of a drone attack in the early hours of this Monday (24). According to the mayor of the city, Serguei Sobyanin, at about four in the morning, “drone attacks on two non-residential buildings” were recorded.
As a result of the drone crash, the roof of a two-story administrative building was destroyed. In addition, windows were broken in nearby residential buildings and shops. Sobyanin promised to help residents repair damage to their apartments “as soon as possible”.
The second drone hit a shopping center under construction. Glass on the 17th and 18th floors was broken in the building over an area of 50 square meters. On both avenues, traffic was temporarily blocked while emergency services eliminated the consequences of the drone crash. There were no victims in any of the cases.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it managed to intercept the drones electronically and blamed Ukraine for the attack. “On the morning of July 24, an attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack by two unmanned aerial vehicles against objects in the city of Moscow was thwarted. By means of electronic warfare, two Ukrainian drones were suppressed and crashed,” he said. the folder.
Ukrainian authorities have not officially commented on the drone attack on Moscow, but Ukrainian media sources quoted by RBK-Ukraine say the attack was prepared by the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.
Russian attack on Odessa
The day before, last Sunday (23), Russian troops carried out another attack on the Ukrainian city of Odessa. The operational command “South” of the Ukrainian army reported that the target of the night attack by Russian drones in the Odessa region was the port infrastructure on the Danube.
“As a result of the attacks, a hangar with grain was destroyed, tanks for storing other types of cargo were damaged, there was a fire in one of the production facilities, which was quickly extinguished,” the statement reads.
The bombing destroyed the largest Orthodox church in the city of Odessa, the Transfiguration Cathedral.
The Russian Ministry of Defense denies that the temple was the target of the Russian attack and claims that the cathedral was destroyed due to “illiterate actions by Ukrainian air defense operators”. The Kremlin claims that Ukrainian “anti-missiles” damaged the cathedral.
Built in 1809, the cathedral belongs to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) and is considered a historical heritage by Unesco. On January 25, 2023, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee included the historic center of Odessa on the list of World Heritage in Danger.
Photo taken on July 23, 2023 shows the Transfiguration Cathedral destroyed as a result of a missile strike in Odesa. / Oleksandr Gimanov / AFP
The process of including the historic center of the city on the Unesco heritage list, according to the Ukrainian authorities, lasted about 10 years. The procedure was carried out in an accelerated manner due to the increase in hostilities in the war in Ukraine.
According to local authorities, the Russian attack on Odessa this morning was the biggest attack on the historic center of the city since the beginning of the war. The regional administration reported at least 44 buildings were damaged in the city, among which 25 are architectural monuments.
UNESCO has “vehemently condemned” the current bombing, promising to send a mission to the city for a preliminary damage assessment.
Editing: Leandro Melito
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
