The Russian regional governor accuses Ukraine of bombing a residential building in the city of Belgorod, near the border with Ukraine.
At least six people were killed and 20 others were injured after a building collapsed in the Russian border city of Belgorod, according to Russian authorities.
A video released by Russia’s Ministry of Civil Defense, Emergencies and Disaster Relief on Sunday showed firefighters and rescuers working on a huge pile of rubble. The ministry said six bodies were recovered from the rubble.
“The number of injured, according to the latest data, is 20 people,” the emergency services said, cited by Russian state news agency TASS.
Earlier, the Emergencies Ministry said 12 people, including two children, were rescued from the scene.
Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov posted a video on Telegram showing a collapsed building with a large hole.
“After direct fire on a residential building… the entire entrance, from the tenth to the ground floor, collapsed,” Gladkov said, condemning the “massive shelling” by the Ukrainian army.
There was no immediate comment from the Ukrainian military.
A resident told Russian news agency RIA Novosti that she was in the corridor of a building and that her husband was in a room when the explosion occurred.
“He didn’t have time [to escape],” she said, adding that her husband was injured in the head and face.
Air raid warnings continued in Belgorod as rescuers worked to search for victims in the rubble.
The Russian Defense Ministry later wrote on social media that the building had been damaged by fragments from a downed Tochka-U TRC missile. He also said air defenses shot down several other rockets over the Belgorod region, as well as two drones that were destroyed in a separate incident.
The Belgorod region, on Russia’s western border, has been the target of a large number of attacks.
While most cross-border shelling is observed in rural areas, attacks were also observed in the capital of the Belgorod region, the city of Belgorod, which was attacked on Saturday night, killing one person and injuring 29 others, Governor Gladkov said in social media. In December 2023, bombings in the city center killed 25 people, prompting authorities to begin building public shelters.
Cities across western Russia have been the target of regular drone attacks since May 2023, with Russian authorities blaming Kiev.
Ukrainian authorities have not acknowledged responsibility for the attacks on Russian territory or the Crimean Peninsula.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
