Ukraine Drone Strike Hits Moscow: Two Killed, Warehouse Fire as War Escalates

• by Shimanta Das
• October 26, 2026

Ukraine launched a major drone attack on Moscow on Sunday, killing two people and setting fire to a warehouse in the capital, according to Russian officials. The Russian Defense Ministry said three drones were intercepted, but a business and shopping development in the west of the city was hit. The fifth and sixth floors of a 50-story building were damaged, state news agency TASS reported, with no casualties initially reported at that site. The attack is part of a sharp escalation in strikes deep inside Russian territory.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that war is “gradually returning” to Russia hours after the Kremlin accused Kyiv of targeting Moscow with drones. The strike follows a pattern of increasing cross-border attacks. Volodarskaya, one of the major hubs in the distribution system of Transneft, is linked to Moscow’s main oil refinery, highlighting the strategic nature of recent targets. Both Russia and Ukraine have intensified strikes in the fifth year of the war, with diplomacy so far failing to end the fighting. The United Nations has warned of a significant rise in civilian deaths.

Diplomatic efforts have also been underway, with mediated talks with Ukraine expected next month, after Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted U.S. officials. Similar mediated talks were held in Abu Dhabi and Geneva at the start of this year, but they have yet to yield a ceasefire. The latest attack underscores the challenges facing negotiators as violence continues on both sides.

“We expect the UN experts to go on the ground and to collect the remains of these drones and to tell us where they are coming from,” a Russian official said, calling for an international investigation. The drones used are described as small, portable, and easily launched, but their main advantage is that they are hard to detect and can be fired from a distance. As the war enters its fifth year, such attacks are likely to continue, further complicating any path to peace.