Ukrainian strike kills civilians in Russia – governor
Two civilians have been killed and a number of others injured in a Ukrainian strike on the Russian town of Shebekino in Belgorod Region, which borders Ukraine, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Saturday.
“According to confirmed data from the Ministry of Emergency Situations, two civilians have been killed,” he wrote on Telegram. Earlier in the day, Gladkov reported that eleven people had been injured in the shelling, four of them seriously wounded.
According to Russia’s Investigative Committee, one of those killed was a minor.
Later, Andrey Ikonnikov, the region’s health minister, clarified the report, saying that the attack had hit a total of 14 people. “Two of them, unfortunately, died before the arrival of an ambulance,” he noted, adding that the fatalities include an unnamed man and a 14-year-old.
The governor said that the Ukrainian strikes also resulted in a blackout which affected almost 15,000 local residents, adding that it would take several hours to restore power supply.
Gladkov also noted that unspecified “civilian facilities were damaged,” adding that all the victims are being cared for by medical services.
After Russia started its military operation in Ukraine in late February, Kiev’s forces have repeatedly shelled and launched drones against civilian and military targets in Belgorod Region. On Friday, a Ukrainian strike destroyed a school, a kindergarten and several private houses in the area.
On Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin imposed martial law in four former Ukrainian territories while introducing a “medium action level” in a number of parts of Western Russia, including Belgorod Region. The new alert regime gives regional officials additional authority to ensure security and react more quickly to any emergencies.
