Ukrainian drone attacks overnight on 18 July injured 26 people across Moscow Oblast, according to regional governor Andrei Vorobyov, as a separate strike on a logistics centre in the Tambov region killed seven workers and wounded 24 others. The coordinated overnight offensive marks one of the deadlier drone campaigns to strike Russian territory in recent weeks.

What Happened in Moscow Oblast

Two people were injured in the city of Noginsk, approximately 55 kilometres east of Moscow, where debris from a downed drone triggered a fire at an oil depot. A maternity hospital and a nearby apartment building were evacuated as a precaution, with patients and medical staff transferred to other facilities and women requiring specialised care moved to hospitals in neighbouring cities.

The remaining 24 injuries occurred after a drone crashed into a warehouse complex in Elektrostal, around 60 kilometres east of Moscow. Governor Vorobyov noted that some of the injured are in serious condition. The Bogorodsky urban district, about 45 kilometres east of Moscow, reportedly suffered the most severe structural damage from the overnight strikes.

Russian air defence forces claimed to have shot down 48 Ukrainian drones over the Moscow region during the same overnight window, according to Vorobyov's statement.

Tambov Strike Kills Seven Night Shift Workers

In a separate and deadlier incident, a Ukrainian drone struck a logistics centre in Kotovsk, Tambov Oblast, killing seven night shift workers and injuring 24 others, Tambov Oblast governor Evgeny Pervyshov said in a social media post. The fire at the warehouse was subsequently extinguished, though firefighting efforts were reportedly ongoing at the time of the statement.

Russian Strikes on Ukraine's Port Infrastructure

The attacks on Russian soil came against a backdrop of sustained Russian military operations. The Russian Defence Ministry said on Friday that its forces had conducted 19 rounds of strikes over the past week targeting Ukraine's key port infrastructure used for military supplies and fuel storage.

Those strikes targeted 24 Ukrainian vessels — including 14 dry cargo ships, three ferries, two container ships, a tanker, a cable-laying vessel, a floating dock, and two patrol boats — across the ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk, Yuzhne, and the Dnieper-Bug area. Russian forces also struck Ukrainian defence industry facilities, ammunition depots, logistics hubs, fuel and energy infrastructure, and sites linked to the production and storage of long-range drones, the ministry said.

Escalating Exchange of Strikes

This comes amid a sustained pattern of reciprocal long-range attacks that have intensified since mid-2024. Ukraine has increasingly targeted Russian industrial and logistics infrastructure deep inside Russian territory, while Moscow has continued its campaign against Ukrainian port and energy assets. Notably, strikes reaching Moscow Oblast carry significant symbolic and strategic weight, given the region's proximity to the Russian capital. How both sides calibrate their next moves — particularly with winter energy infrastructure at stake — will be closely watched in the days ahead.