2 min readMay 17, 2026 06:36 PM IST
An Indian citizen died and three others suffered injuries in a Ukrainian drone strike in Russia’s Moscow on Sunday, the Indian embassy in Moscow said, as Russia reported four deaths in one of the largest drone attacks on the capital since the war began.
“Today in the Moscow region, as a result of a drone attack, one citizen of India was killed and three others were injured,” the embassy said in a statement. Embassy officials visited the victims in hospital and coordinated with local authorities and the company employing the Indians, the statement read.
Russian authorities said the strikes killed four people, including a woman in Khimki near Moscow and two men in the village of Pogorelki, north of the capital. Another man died after a drone struck a truck in the Belgorod region bordering Ukraine, local media reported.
One Indian worker has lost his life and three others have been injured in a drone attack in Moscow region earlier today. Embassy officials have visited the location and met the injured workers in the hospital.
The Embassy condoles the loss of life and is working with the…
— India in Russia (@IndEmbMoscow) May 17, 2026
Moscow region attack
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said drones targeted areas near the city’s oil refinery and injured at least 12 people. He said the “technology” of the refinery hadn’t been damaged.
Sheremetyevo airport (Russia’s largest airport) said drone debris fell on its premises but flights continued without disruption.
Russia’s defence ministry said Sunday that air defence systems destroyed 556 drones overnight across the country. State agency Tass reported that Russian forces shot down 81 drones headed for Moscow.
Zelenskyy defends strikes
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine launched the drones in response to Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities.
“Our responses to Russia’s prolongation of the war and attacks on our cities and communities are entirely justified. This time, Ukrainian long-distance sanctions have reached the Moscow region, and we are clearly telling the Russians: their state must end its war,” Zelenskyy said.