Dozens of drones struck an oil refinery in Moscow that was already hit several days ago, according to reports. Large explosions and massive fires broke out at the site. Russia has begun importing fuels from Asian countries amid the strikes on its energy infrastructure.
A new wave of drones struck the Moscow oil refinery on Thursday morning, hitting the same facility targeted several times this week, according to reports. Dozens of unmanned aircraft overwhelmed the site, triggering large explosions and a massive fire. The attack comes after the refinery—the largest supplying the capital region—was knocked offline by an earlier drone strike, as The Zioneer reported on Tuesday, June 16, at 10:19 Jerusalem. Russia has begun importing fuel from Asian states, a sign of the cumulative pressure on domestic refining capacity.
The thread on this story began Tuesday morning, when initial reports of a strike on the Moscow refinery emerged without details. By 10:19 Jerusalem, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin confirmed damage but reported no casualties, while descriptions of a large fire and halted operations appeared from an Arabic-language source. Later Tuesday, The Zioneer reported the refinery had been knocked offline. The same source—Abu Ali Express—provided the initial details on the facility's strategic role, noting it processes 11.6 million tons of petroleum products annually and supplies an estimated 40% of Moscow's fuel. By Thursday morning, the refinery was hit again by dozens of drones, marking the second confirmed strike of the week.
As The Zioneer reported on June 15, Russia had allowed refineries to lower fuel quality to avoid shortages as Ukrainian drone attacks on energy infrastructure doubled in 2026 compared to the previous year. A June 14 report quoted President Zelensky announcing Ukrainian drone strikes on a Yaroslavl oil facility and a Tula explosives plant. Several other Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries—including strikes in Samara on June 10, in Nizhnekamsk on June 12, and an interception-triggered fire in southwestern Russia on June 11—have been reported over the past week.
Damage and casualty figures from Thursday's strike are not yet available. The specific type of drone used has not been confirmed. It remains unverified whether the refinery has been completely knocked offline again or is partially operating.
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