Russian authorities reported significant anti-drone activity around Moscow and other regions during an extended period of operations that stretched from late morning into the early hours of the following day.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that air defence units had intercepted in excess of 50 drones over about 15 hours. He provided a running tally of the aircraft downed between roughly 11 a.m. (0800 GMT) on Thursday and 2 a.m. on Friday, posting a series of dispatches on Telegram throughout Thursday announcing the interceptions. Emergency crews were deployed to examine debris that fell to the ground, Sobyanin said.
In a separate Telegram post, Russia’s Defence Ministry gave a different account for a broader geographic area, saying 95 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted over a four-hour period ending at midnight. The ministry said those interceptions occurred in various regions of central and southern Russia.
The Defence Ministry also announced that it would observe a three-day ceasefire beginning at midnight on the night of May 7-May 8 and lasting through May 10. The pause in operations was stated to be in connection with commemorations of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.
Official statements therefore include two distinct tallies and overlapping time frames: the mayor’s running total focused on a roughly 15-hour span with operations concentrated around Moscow, while the Defence Ministry reported a four-hour period with a higher intercept count across several regions. Both sets of posts were issued on Telegram and both referenced active interception efforts and subsequent ground-level examination of wreckage.
Emergency personnel were noted as examining debris on the ground in the areas affected by the intercepted drones, according to the mayor’s updates. The Defence Ministry’s announcement of a temporary ceasefire for commemorative observances was also included in its Telegram communications.
The public statements present active defence operations against incoming drones during the specified windows and indicate ongoing post-interception work by emergency teams where wreckage reached the ground.