Ukrainian drones strike Russian retail giant Wildberries, killing eight
Ukrainian drone strikes on warehouses belonging to Russia's largest online retailer underscore Kyiv's deepening ability to disrupt Russian commercial logistics and energy infrastructure.
Ukrainian drones attacked two warehouses belonging to Wildberries, Russia's largest online retailer, killing eight people and injuring 62 others. The overnight strikes targeted logistics facilities in Tambov, roughly 295 miles south-east of Moscow, and in Elektrostal within the Moscow region.
Wildberries operates as the Russian equivalent of Amazon, making it a cornerstone of the country's domestic e-commerce sector. The merged RWB group, which combines Wildberries with the advertising company Russ, was valued at about $12.6 billion by Forbes Russia in 2026. Wildberries CEO Tatyana Kim described the event as a "terrible night" for Russia and for the company. Unverified images from the scene showed flames and black smoke rising from a vast building as dozens of workers fled into a car park.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the targeted warehouses were "major logistics facilities" used to "supply sanctioned components for drone production and navigation equipment." He noted that Ukraine had also struck additional targets in the Sea of Azov, the Black Sea, and Russian-annexed Crimea. Zelensky framed the operations as a direct response to "Russian strikes on our civilian infrastructure and on our cities and communities," noting that 14 people were killed in Russian attacks across Ukraine overnight.
Beyond retail disruption, the overnight barrage also hit Russian energy infrastructure. Andrei Vorobyov, governor of the Moscow region, confirmed a Russian oil depot was struck by a falling drone. He described this incident as having the "most serious consequences" of the night, though he did not detail the level of damage. Zelensky separately confirmed that Ukraine had struck "an oil facility."
These attacks fit a broader Ukrainian strategy to cripple Russia's critical energy infrastructure. Kyiv claims that nearly 43% of Russia's oil refining capacity has been "disabled" by recent long-range drone strikes. The economic pressure appears to be having a tangible effect. Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a rare admission that fuel shortages had been caused by Ukrainian attacks, leading him to sign a bill in early July aimed at boosting supplies to the domestic market.
Local Russian officials emphasized the scale of the aerial assault. Tambov governor Evgeniy Pervyshov said 28 drones were shot down on approach to his region. He noted that the seven deaths in Tambov occurred on the night shift, with most of the 25 injuries there caused by shrapnel. He called it the "largest and most inhumane" attack on the Tambov region to date in terms of drone volume and casualties. Vorobyov added that a total of 48 drones were shot down in the Moscow region overnight, with eight of the injured in Elektrostal in "serious condition."
