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Ukraine Fired Over 400 Drones Towards Moscow Ahead of NATO Summit, Says Mayor

This photograph shows a heavily damaged gas station following a Russian air attack in Kamianske, Dnipropetrovsk region on July 7, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
This photograph shows a heavily damaged gas station following a Russian air attack in Kamianske, Dnipropetrovsk region on July 7, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Ukraine Fired Over 400 Drones Towards Moscow Ahead of NATO Summit, Says Mayor

This photograph shows a heavily damaged gas station following a Russian air attack in Kamianske, Dnipropetrovsk region on July 7, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
This photograph shows a heavily damaged gas station following a Russian air attack in Kamianske, Dnipropetrovsk region on July 7, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

Ukraine launched more than 400 drones toward Russia's capital Moscow, the city's mayor said on Tuesday, ahead of a crucial NATO summit in Türkiye in which the war will likely dominate talks.

The attacks underscore Kyiv's use of long-range drones in the more than four-year war, with Russian border areas coming under fire and Moscow facing increasing drone attacks.

"From evening until 6:00 am (0300 GMT), more than 430 drones were flying in the direction of Moscow region," Mayor Sergei Sobyanin posted on the state-backed MAX platform.

"Most were neutralized by air defense forces at distant approaches. 36 enemy UAVs were destroyed on approach to Moscow."

Acting Belgorod regional governor Aleksandr Shuvaev said several Ukrainian missile strikes had targeted Belgorod city in the south-west and the surrounding district.

"In the village of Belovskoye, Belgorod district, a civilian resident was, sadly, killed as a result of the first missile strike," Shuvaev said on MAX.

It comes after Russian strikes killed 30 people in Ukraine on Monday a day ahead of a crucial two-day NATO summit.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged allies to take "strong decisions" at the summit in Ankara just hours after the deadly strikes.

"It is critically important that the world -- first and foremost the United States and our European partners -- come out of the NATO Summit in Ankara with strong decisions in support of our air defense," Zelensky said on Facebook.

Russia and Ukraine have stepped up long-range strikes in recent months, with both sides regularly reporting drone attacks and missile launches targeting territory far from the front line.

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Iran Vows 'Devastating' Response to US Threat to Cut off its Economic Lifelines

US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Iran Vows 'Devastating' Response to US Threat to Cut off its Economic Lifelines

US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Iran said on Friday that its response to any new US threats would be "devastating" after Washington pledged to impose the toughest financial penalties in history with the aim of toppling the Iranian leadership.

Washington prepared for sanctions that US Treasury chief Scott Bessent said he would detail on Monday. President Donald Trump earlier warned of economic consequences against any country that provided "any type of lifeline to Iran."

The chief of staff of Iran's Armed Forces, Major General Ali Abdollahi, said the Islamic Republic's reaction would be broad and decisive.

"With preparedness across land, sea, air, air defense and cyberspace, Iran's armed forces will respond to the enemy's new threats with crushing, punishing and devastating responses," Abdollahi was quoted as saying by Iranian media.

The US and Iran have twice announced ceasefire deals, in April and June, aiming to restore the free flow of ships through Hormuz on a path towards ending the nearly six-month-old conflict, but both quickly crumbled.

Bessent told CNBC he would "talk about exactly what we're going to do" on Iran at a press conference on Monday.

"We are going to collapse this regime. It is time for our allies and the rest of the world to make a decision," he said, describing a naval blockade reimposed on Iran in July and the "toughest sanctions in history" as a "one-two punch".

Iran has weathered near-continuous economic sanctions for nearly 50 years, since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, but its people are suffering high inflation, a weakening currency and energy shortages along with damaged infrastructure.

Some Iranians interviewed by Reuters have said more economic punishment could increase hardship, weaken the clerical establishment and prompt unrest, although there has been no sign of that since a deadly crackdown on protests in January.

Before Bessent spoke, Iran's foreign ministry said US sanctions would not "create even the slightest hesitation in Iranians’ determination to safeguard Iran’s independence, dignity and national sovereignty."

World

Iran President Says Time to End War while in Position of Strength

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (Reuters)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (Reuters)
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Iran President Says Time to End War while in Position of Strength

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (Reuters)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (Reuters)

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday it was time to end the months-long Middle East war with the United States because Tehran appeared to be in a stronger position than Washington.

Tehran is keeping the key Strait of Hormuz partially shut and Washington is persisting with a naval counter-blockade of Iran.

"It is better that we bring the war to an end now as we are in a position of power and dignity," Pezeshkian said in a meeting with doctors.

"The whole world acknowledges our victory and emphasises that America has attacked our schools, hospitals and infrastructure in violation of all regulations and is hated around the world."

Pezeshkian also defended a memorandum of understanding agreed with the US in June aimed at ending the war, claiming it did not signal a defeat for Tehran.

"They cannot find even a single clause in this agreement that indicates capitulation. All the commitments concern the other side," he said.

His remarks come weeks after Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said he had approved the deal to end the war despite having "different views".

Hardline lawmakers in Iran's parliament have also criticized the government over the deal, accusing it of giving concessions to the US, mostly over the re-opening of the strategic Hormuz Strait.

According to reports in US media, the American navy has been organizing and protecting secret convoys of tankers through the southern sector of the Strait of Hormuz enabling between five and 10 million barrels a day of oil to be exported.

As Tehran claimed to be in the stronger position, the US has said it would ramp up sanctions to heap pressure on Tehran.

The American plan drew condemnation from Iran's foreign ministry, which accused the US of "economic terrorism" and "crimes against humanity".

"The perpetrators and instigators of these sanctions are deserving of trial and punishment for committing such heinous crimes," it said in a statement carried by state media.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday vowed Washington would "collapse" the Iranian regime with its threatened campaign nearly six months since their war began.

The comments underscored how the Trump administration is shifting to economic rather than military pressure on Tehran as the US president's unpopular war drags on.

China also criticized Washington's economic plan, saying that US "sanctions and pressure" would not resolve the Middle East conflict.

World

Teen Pleads Guilty over Arson Attack on Iran International Offices in London

A shopper walks in Oxford Street, in London, Wednesday, Aug.19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
A shopper walks in Oxford Street, in London, Wednesday, Aug.19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
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Teen Pleads Guilty over Arson Attack on Iran International Offices in London

A shopper walks in Oxford Street, in London, Wednesday, Aug.19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
A shopper walks in Oxford Street, in London, Wednesday, Aug.19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

A British teenager pleaded guilty on Friday over an arson attack at offices linked to television station Iran International in northwest London earlier this year.

Nathan Dunn, 19, pleaded guilty to a charge of "arson being reckless as to whether life is ⁠endangered" at London's ⁠Old Bailey over the incident in April in which an ignited container was thrown towards premises belonging to Volant ⁠Media, the parent company of the London-based broadcaster.

The device landed in a car park and the fire extinguished itself, causing no damage or injuries, Reuters reported.

Dunn had originally been charged alongside a 21-year-old man and a 16-year-old boy, ⁠who ⁠cannot be identified because of his age.

Iran International, a broadcaster critical of Iran's government, said at the time that a suspicious vehicle had been denied entry to its London site shortly before the incendiary device was thrown.