MOSCOW: Ukrainian drones struck again at the heart of Russia’s consumer economy overnight Monday, hitting multiple warehouses linked to Wildberries, the country’s largest online retailer, and killing at least five people in the Moscow region.
The strikes targeted facilities in three regions: near Moscow, in St Petersburg, and in Tver. Local officials said an industrial site in Chekhov, about 69km south of the Kremlin, caught fire after a warehouse was hit. Seven of the 10 injured were in moderate condition; one remained serious.
Ukrainian media reported the Chekhov site was linked to Wildberries, often called the “Russian Amazon.” The company confirmed its St Petersburg facility was hit but did not comment further. Video verified by Reuters showed thick black smoke rising from a burning warehouse.
Kyiv says the depots supply the Russian military; a claim Moscow denies. Russia’s defence ministry said it shot down 320 drones overnight. The attacks come as part of a widening Ukrainian campaign against Wildberries, which has seen multiple strikes since mid-July. The company, often described as Russia’s Amazon, handles millions of orders a day and is a lifeline for small businesses across the country, according to Reuters
Meanwhile, Russian strikes on Ukraine killed at least four people. In Mykolaiv, an 89-year-old woman died and two young girls were among seven injured. In Sumy, a woman and two girls aged five and 10 were killed in a residential strike. Russian attacks also injured people in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi and set a food warehouse ablaze in Dnipro, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service.
The violence has also touched civilians inside Russia. A day earlier, a drone crashed on a busy beach in the Krasnodar region, killing seven and injuring 58. Footage verified by the BBC showed tourists watching from the sand and the water as the drone exploded on the shore. Russian officials blamed Ukraine for a “deliberate strike on civilians,” while some Ukrainian channels suggested electronic warfare or air defences may have brought the drone down. Ukraine has not commented.
Both sides insist they do not deliberately target civilians. But as the war grinds on, the line between front line and home front grows thinner and the cost, measured in lives and livelihoods, keeps rising.
