Russia and Ukraine exchanged some of the largest attacks of the war on Monday, as Ukraine launched a massive drone assault on Moscow following a series of Russian missile strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities over the weekend. The escalation came amid growing political tensions in Kyiv over the country's military leadership.

Russian authorities said a Ukrainian strike on a civilian bus in the Belgorod border region killed five people, including a child, and critically injured three others. The attack occurred as Ukraine carried out a large-scale drone offensive targeting Moscow and surrounding areas.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said more than 400 Ukrainian drones were launched toward the Russian capital from Sunday into Monday. He stated that most of the drones were intercepted by Russian air defenses. However, Moscow region Governor Andrei Vorobyov reported that at least 10 people were injured and that several residential buildings and civilian infrastructure sites sustained damage.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the drone operation was aimed at Russian military logistics facilities and an oil depot in the Moscow region.

"We are responding, justly, to every Russian strike against our cities and communities," Zelenskyy wrote on social media.
The Ukrainian operation followed Russian ballistic missile strikes that targeted Kyiv and several other cities over the weekend. In eastern Ukraine, local authorities reported that Russian attacks killed two people each in the cities of Pavlohrad and Kramatorsk. Another civilian was reported killed in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia during Russian shelling.

Both Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly denied deliberately targeting civilians throughout the conflict.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's military rejected reports that President Zelenskyy was planning to dismiss Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi, describing the rumors as false.

The speculation comes after Zelenskyy removed Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov last week, a decision that sparked public protests and criticism. The dismissal followed a long-running dispute between Fedorov and Syrskyi over military reforms and defense policy.

Zelenskyy has appointed Yevhenii Khmara, the acting head of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU), as acting defense minister and has asked parliament to confirm the appointment.

On Monday, the Ukrainian president shared images of meetings with senior military commanders, saying they had discussed the latest battlefield developments as the war, now in its fifth year, continues with no immediate signs of de-escalation.