Russia’s aviation authorities briefly closed Moscow’s four airports on Monday, after a flurry of drones were intercepted.

Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram that 59 drones heading towards the city had been destroyed.

Kyiv has sent drones into Russia in retaliation for Moscow bombing its cities, although Sobyanin did not specify that the drones were from Ukraine.

Authorities announced at 5:39 am (0239 GMT) that airports had reopened.

This comes days after Ukraine launched its largest drone attack on Moscow in years, hitting a refinery near Moscow and other targets in Russia and occupied territories. The Russian Defense Ministry reported that it had intercepted more than 500 Ukrainian drones overnight.

Russia has pummelled Ukraine with near-daily aerial barrages of drones and missiles since the war began in 2022. Kyiv has in the past months stepped up its strikes on Russia, regularly hitting oil-processing facilities and its export hubs in a bid to sap the vital fossil fuel revenues funding Moscow’s war effort, which is now in its fifth year. AFP