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At least three people have been killed and 21 injured after a woman brought a homemade bomb near a central Moscow restaurant, according to Russian officials.
The explosion, which occurred at around 7:55pm local time (5:55pm BST), occurred near an upscale Italian restaurant located in one of Moscow‘s seven Stalin-era skyscrapers at Kudrinkskaya Square, police said.
Russia’s Anti-Terrorism Committee said that an unidentified woman had tried to get into the restaurant but was stopped by a security guard, Russian news agencies reported.
Among the dead were the security guard, the unnamed woman, and another visitor, the committee added.
The Kommersant daily newspaper cited sources as saying that the bomb had been intended to maim and kill guests who were enjoying themselves on the restaurant’s summer terrace outside.
The restaurant’s website said the venue had been closed on Saturday for a private event, but it is unclear who was present.
There is not yet any suggestion that the explosion is linked to the war in Ukraine.
It came after Kyiv struck three Russian oil refineries nearly 1,600 kilometres beyond enemy lines, Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday.
Drone fragments fell in Romanian territory near Ukraine border
Fragments of a drone shot down by Ukraine near its Danube river border fell on Romanian national territory on a farm field near the village of Periprava without causing any damage, Romania’s Defence Ministry said on Sunday.
The drone had previously spent 20 minutes in Romanian air space before flying into Ukraine, the ministry said without specifying its origin. Romanian F-16 fighter jets shot down three Russian drones breaching national airspace over three consecutive days in late July.
Holly Evans2 August 2026 21:00
In recent weeks, Ukraine has been turning its attention to attacking large warehouses owned by Wildberries.
Wildberries is Russia‘s largest online marketplace. It has been called the country’s equivalent of Amazon, as its business model resembles a mix of Amazon Marketplace, eBay, and Temu.
Founded in 2004 by Tatyana Kim, who is now Russia’s richest woman, the company has since become the dominant e-commerce platform in Russia and several neighbouring countries.
Hosting millions of third-party sellers, the platform sells almost everything, from electronics to groceries. The marketplace features clothes, books, cosmetics, toys, appliances, household items, sports gear and much more. There’s an “E-Pharmacy” page and a travel section for booking plane tickets or hotels.
Smoke rises after a Ukrainian drone attack on a Wildberries warehouse (Reuters)
It operates a vast network of warehouses, sorting centres, and logistics hubs across Russia.
In 2021, Kim acquired a small bank and turned it into what now is Wildberries Bank, but that institution has since come under sanctions by the U.K. and the European Union.
Holly Evans2 August 2026 20:00
Moscow attack occurred after Russia tightens security around top officials
Earlier this year, Russia’s Federal Security Service announced that authorities would tighten security around senior military and government officials, after a series of assassination attempts in Russian cities that followed the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
So far, Russian authorities have not drawn any connections between Saturday’s blast and these earlier attacks or the war in Ukraine.
Russia previously said Kyiv was behind a car bombing in Moscow last April that killed Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik, a deputy head of the main operational department in Russia’s General Staff.
Ukraine did not publicly claim responsibility.
But Ukraine’s SBU security service earlier said it had organized the killing in December 2024 of Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, who headed the Russian military’s nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces.
Kirillov was killed by a bomb hidden in a scooter outside his apartment building in Moscow, a day after Ukraine’s security service leveled criminal charges against him.
Holly Evans2 August 2026 19:00
Why is Ukraine attacking ships in the Caspian Sea?
Ukraine officials have claimed the Iranian vessel was carrying components for drones and missiles from Iran to Russia, but Tehran claimed the vessel was “entirely civilian” and was carrying “no military cargo”.
Iran is a major supplier of weapons to Russia with its Shahed drones. In August 2024, Ukraine attacked a cargo vessel in the Caspian Sea, destroying a ship reportedly loaded with Shahed-136 drone components and Iranian munitions.
But former British army officer and weapons expert Hamish de Bretton-Gordon believes that Ukraine’s most recent attack on the Caspian Sea is a “message to Trump” first and foremost.
He argued that by executing an attack around 500 miles away from Kyiv, Ukraine is demonstrating its capability and showing the US president how it can help take on Iran.
He told The Independent: “Ukraine is trying to show Trump that the Russians are helping Iran out. Ukraine is demonstrating that they can prevent that and help with Trump’s Iran problem, but the US needs to help Ukraine in return.”
Holly Evans2 August 2026 18:00
Inside the camp in Italy helping Ukraine’s traumatised children
Both teenagers have suffered immensely as a result of Russia’s invasion, recalling to The Independent their grim personal anecdotes including a civilian minibus torn to shreds by Russian gunfire, the kidnapping of family members, and the destruction of their home towns.
Now, for the first time since 2022, the 17-year-olds no longer need fear the sound of a passing aircraft, tucked safely away in the Italian coastal town of Lignano Pineta alongside 30 others, for a camp aimed at alleviating the psychological toll of war for Ukrainian children.
Read the full article here:
Holly Evans2 August 2026 17:00
Italian-led EU force boards sanctioned tanker from Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ in Mediterranean
An EU mission led by Italy boarded a tanker belonging to Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” on Sunday to verify its nationality and flag registration, Italy’s Defence Ministry said.
It was not immediately clear whether the vessel had been detained while the checks were carried out.
The ministry said the Toa Payoh, a tanker under EU sanctions that was sailing under the flag of Cameroon, had been intercepted in the Mediterranean, west of the Italian island of Pantelleria, while travelling from Benin to Istanbul.
The ship’s captain initially failed to cooperate, prompting a team of Italian military personnel to board the vessel from a helicopter launched by the Thaon di Revel, flagship of the EU’s EUNAVFOR MED Irini operation.
The inspection, carried out with the support of a Greek vessel and a Polish maritime patrol aircraft, lasted about two hours and was completed safely, the ministry said.
Italian authorities were examining documentation obtained during the inspection.
Holly Evans2 August 2026 16:00
Mapped: Where is the current Ukraine frontline?
Holly Evans2 August 2026 15:00
Watch: At least 3 dead after IED explodes near Moscow cafeAt least 3 dead after IED explodes near Moscow cafe
Holly Evans2 August 2026 14:00
Zelensky asks for Trump’s help to win Elon Musk’s approval for Starlink drones plan
The availability of these interceptors is dwindling amid the ongoing conflict involving the US and Israel against Iran, with Mr Trump reportedly stepping back from a recent pledge to grant Ukraine a licence for their production.
Read the full article here:
Holly Evans2 August 2026 13:00
Moscow mayor calls Saturday’s deadly bomb attack on restaurant a ‘terrorist act’
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin called the bomb attack on a restaurant in the capital a “brutal terrorist act,” but did not say who was responsible.
“Yesterday, a brutal terrorist act was committed in Moscow that claimed human lives. The victims are currently in the city’s hospitals, where they are receiving all necessary care,” Sobyanin wrote on social media.
The blast on Saturday evening killed a security guard and a guest, as well as the woman bomber, Russian state media said, citing local officials.
At least 21 people were also wounded when the explosive device detonated at the restaurant on Kudrinskaya Square in central Moscow, the National Anti-Terrorism Committee said, quoted by Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.
The attack was still being investigated, the Moscow Investigative Committee told the news agency on Saturday evening.
As of early afternoon on Sunday, there was no further information from Russian authorities, and no one had publicly claimed responsibility.
Holly Evans2 August 2026 12:21