An condominium constructing partially collapsed within the Russian border metropolis of Belgorod on Sunday, inflicting a minimum of 13 deaths and injuring 20 different individuals, officers stated. They blamed Ukrainian shelling for the constructing’s destruction.
On-line footage confirmed rescuers looking for survivors among the many remnants of the constructing’s stairwell, then fleeing the scene as a part of the roof crashed to the bottom. Russia’s Emergency Conditions Ministry stated 13 our bodies had been recovered from the rubble to this point.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, the nation’s high legislation enforcement company, stated in a press release that the 10-story constructing had been hit by Ukrainian shelling.
The Russian Protection Ministry later wrote on social media that the constructing had been broken by fragments of a downed Tochka-U TRC missile. It additionally stated that air defenses had shot down a number of extra rockets over the Belgorod area, in addition to two drones that have been destroyed in a separate incident later Sunday.
Air raid alerts continued throughout Belgorod as rescuers labored. Town additionally got here below hearth Saturday night, killing one particular person and wounding 29 others, Belgorod Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov stated.
Cities throughout western Russia have come below common assault from drones since Could 2023, with Russian officers blaming Kyiv. Ukrainian officers by no means acknowledge duty for assaults on Russian territory or the Crimean Peninsula.
The Belgorod area, on Russia’s western border, has been the goal of numerous strikes. Though most cross-border shelling is seen in rural areas, assaults have additionally been seen on the area’s capital. In December 2023, shelling within the coronary heart of Belgorod metropolis killed 25 individuals, prompting authorities to start out erecting public shelters.
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Comply with AP’s protection of the battle in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
