Residents in parts of Moscow woke up on Thursday to what they described as “black rain” after Ukraine launched its biggest drone assault on the Russian capital since the full-scale war began, striking an oil refinery and sending thick smoke across the city.
The large-scale attack, involving nearly 200 drones aimed at Moscow, triggered fires at the Kapotnya oil refinery in the city’s south-east, injured 17 people in the Moscow region and forced the temporary closure of all four of the capital’s airports.
Several residents told the BBC that a light drizzle left black, oily specks on their clothes after the refinery was hit. While Moscow authorities denied claims of “oil rain”, the city’s official Telegram channel advised people in the affected district to keep their windows shut and urged families with children, elderly residents and people with asthma to leave the area immediately.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said it intercepted and destroyed nearly 1,000 drones and four Ukrainian cruise missiles across the country within 24 hours. An oil depot in the southern Rostov region was also hit, leaving one person dead.
Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, said the strike was retaliation for last week’s Russian attack on Kyiv, which set the historic Pechersk Lavra monastery on fire.
“We don’t want this war and have never wanted it,” Zelensky said. “But if Ukraine burns, your Moscow will burn too.”
Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, responded by warning that future strikes on Ukraine would be carried out “on a mass scale”, adding that he had long believed “words are not enough”.
The Kapotnya refinery was hit for the third time in a month and the second time this week. Dramatic videos circulating online showed a huge explosion blowing the roof off an oil storage tank and sending it soaring dozens of metres into the air as thick black smoke engulfed the skyline.
A nearby shopping centre also caught fire after it was reportedly struck by falling drone debris. In one BBC-verified video, a drone crashes into the upper floors of a high-rise building, scattering glass and debris into the courtyard below. Another verified clip showed a car park coated in a dark oily film, while the ground beneath parked vehicles remained untouched.
One resident told the BBC she noticed “unpleasant black spots” on her clothes after stepping outside, adding that a friend’s jacket was also covered in black specks.
“We’ll now be keeping an eye on whether our hair starts falling out because of petroleum products,” she said.
Another resident living near the refinery said he woke up to his building shaking at dawn.
“It’s all very frightening,” he said. “Before, I wasn’t so scared, but now it is almost a panic.”
Despite local restrictions banning the publication of images showing the aftermath of drone strikes, numerous videos emerged on social media showing drones flying over Moscow in broad daylight and explosions around industrial areas on the city’s outskirts.
Military analysts say Ukraine has increasingly relied on swarms of reconnaissance and decoy drones to identify weaknesses in Russian air defences before launching its main attacks.
More than four years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv has significantly expanded its long-range strike capability. Drone attacks on Moscow, around 500km from the Ukrainian border, have become more frequent since the first successful strikes reached the Russian capital in spring 2023.
Although Russia has strengthened air defences around Moscow, Thursday’s unprecedented barrage is expected to intensify scrutiny over the effectiveness of the systems protecting the country’s critical infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Kyiv said Russia launched more than 200 drones and multiple ballistic missiles at Ukraine overnight.
Russian President, Vladimir Putin, who is hosting Southeast Asian leaders at a summit in Kazan, has yet to publicly comment on the attack.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister, Andriy Sybiha, also weighed in on X, saying: “One of the most popular questions asked by Muscovites this morning is ‘What is going on?'”
“I can answer. Your country started a war of aggression against ours. For years, it has been killing our people,” he wrote.
“Now that you know what’s going on, ask Putin when he is planning to end it.”
