The UN has condemned Ukraine’s deadly shelling of the Russian border city of Belgorod. This comes after Moscow accused Kiev of deliberately killing civilians.
“The attacks against civilian population and civilian infrastructure are a violation of international humanitarian law and must stop immediately,” the office of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, as quoted by RIA Novosti.
At least 22 people were killed and more than 100 were injured in Ukrainian missile strikes on Belgorod on Saturday, according to local officials. The Russian Defense Ministry said that cluster munitions were used in the attack.
Russia requested an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council on Saturday. In a speech at the UN headquarters in New York, Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia claimed that US and UK “consultants” helped plan the strikes on Belgorod. He warned that the “organizers and perpetrators” of the attack “will be punished.”
On Friday, Guterres condemned “in the strongest terms” Russia’s large-scale strikes on targets in Kiev and several other Ukrainian regions. According to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, 39 people were killed and nearly 160 were injured.
The Russian Defense Ministry issued a statement on Saturday saying that only “military facilities and infrastructure” were targeted in the air raids. Russian officials also claimed that civilian deaths in Ukraine occurred due to the faulty work of Kiev’s air defense systems.