Ukraine claims strike on Russian oil refinery in huge drone attack

Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s centre for countering disinformation, said on Telegram that an oil refinery in Ryazan had been hit, as well as the Kremniy plant in Bryansk. Kyiv says the facility produces components for missiles and other weapons.

Bloggers on the social media site Telegram posted images and videos of fires raging in Ryazan. Footage verified as genuine by the BBC shows people fleeing from the site in cars as a blaze takes hold.

Russian state-owned news agency RIA cited a statement from the Kremniy plant in Bryansk, which said work had been suspended after an attack involving six drones. Pavel Malkov, the regional governor, said emergency services were responding.

The Kremlin acknowledged the attacks but made no mention of damage or casualties.

It claimed to have destroyed 121 Ukrainian drones, including six over the Moscow region, 20 in the Ryazan region, and a number over the border region of Bryansk.

Sergei Sobyanin, Moscow’s mayor, said the city’s air defences had intercepted attacks by Ukrainian drones at four locations.

He said air defences southeast of the capital in Kolomna and Ramenskoye had also repelled drones, without specifying how many. He said there was no damage.