Russia has reported a new drone attack on Moscow which again forced authorities to temporarily shut down all three major airports serving the capital.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said a drone was brought down by air defence systems over the Istra district of the Moscow region, some 50 kilometres west of the Kremlin.
Three major Moscow airports, Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo and Vnukovo, suspended flights for couple of hours on Friday, TASS news agency reported early on Saturday.
Aerial attacks on Moscow and other Russian-held territory have intensified in recent weeks, including 42 drones intercepted over the Russia-held Crimean Peninsula on Friday - one of the biggest reported air assaults since the war began.
Although the attacks have not caused extensive damage, their intensity has forced the Russian authorities to temporarily shut down airports serving the capital several times this week.
Russia has blamed Ukraine for the Friday attack and all the previous assaults that intensified after two drones were destroyed over the Kremlin in early May.
The Ukrainian military has said previously, however, that destroying Russia's military infrastructure helps a counteroffensive that Ukraine began in June.
Dozens of Russian troops were killed and injured, the internet news portal Ukrainska Pravda reported on Friday citing sources at the SBU.
A photo of smoke clouds was also published.
According to the report, the 126th Brigade of the Russian Black Sea Fleet was attacked in the village of Perevalne, not far from Crimea's capital Simferopol.
Other Ukrainian media also reported on the operation, saying drones were able to bypass Russian air defences and hit an ammunition depot along with other military equipment.
The sources speaking to Ukrainian media suggested that the Russian occupation forces were caught unprepared.
There was no immediate information offered by Ukrainian or Russian officials.
Battlefield claims are difficult to independently verify.
The Russian Defence Ministry and the occupation authorities in Crimea often boast of shooting down Ukrainian drones.
Ukraine has been increasingly targeting targets on the Black Sea peninsula annexed by Russia back in 2014.
Ukraine did not immediately comment and almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia or on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.
