Ukraine hits Russia with missiles and drones, 14 people died, 108 were injured. The apparent Ukrainian attacks come a day after at least 39 civilians were killed in Russian strikes in Ukraine, the French edition of Euronews.
The Kremlin threatened to strike back after a wave of deadly Ukrainian strikes on Saturday.
He accused Ukrainian forces of shelling Belgorod, killing 14 and injuring 108.
Two children were among the dead in the Russian border town, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov announced in a statement on social networks.
Although previous attacks in Belgorod region have usually taken place at night, on Saturday (December 30) pictures on social media showed fires in the city centre, with burning cars and plumes of smoke billowing from buildings.
One of the hits was near a public ice rink in the very heart of the city.
Air raid sirens sounded throughout the city.
Earlier on Saturday, drones were spotted in the skies over Russia’s Moscow, Bryansk, Oryol and Kursk regions, the country’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The agency reported no casualties and said all drones were destroyed by air defenses.
Since May, cities in western Russia have been regularly attacked by drones, with Russian authorities blaming Kiev.
Ukrainian officials have never acknowledged responsibility for attacks on Russian territory or the Crimean peninsula. However, larger airstrikes against Russia have previously followed heavy attacks on Ukrainian cities.
On Friday (December 29), Moscow’s forces fired 122 missiles and dozens of drones into Ukrainian territory, an attack described by one air force official as “the biggest air strike of the war”.
At least 160 people were injured and an unknown number buried under rubble during the attack, which damaged a maternity home, apartment blocks and schools.
Western officials and analysts recently warned that Russia had scaled back its cruise missile strikes for months in an apparent attempt to stockpile supplies for massive winter strikes, hoping to demoralize the Ukrainians.
Fighting along the front line has largely been bogged down by winter weather after Ukraine’s summer counter-offensive failed to make a significant breakthrough along the roughly 1,000km line of contact.
In September, experts stated before Euronews, that a key element is psychological warfare, with Ukraine trying to boost morale at home by demonstrating offensive prowess. However, others suggest that military motives also exist.
2023-12-30 16:32:54
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