Nighttime strikes attributed to Ukraine caused "serious damage" in the Russian border city of Belgorod, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a late-night Telegram video. Officials held an emergency meeting, and parts of the city experienced power outages while crews worked to restore electricity. The Bryansk governor reported HIMARS and drone strikes on energy facilities. Reuters could not immediately verify the reports and Ukraine offered no immediate comment.
Night Shelling 'Causes Serious Damage' In Belgorod, Governor Says
Residential buildings during a power blackout, that according to local authorities was caused by a recent Ukrainian missile attack targeting the regional energy system, amid the Russia-Ukraine military conflict in Belgorod, Russia. REUTERS/Stringer
Nighttime strikes attributed to Ukraine inflicted what Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov described as "serious damage" in the Russian border city, he said in a solemn late-night Telegram video on Friday.
Gladkov said city officials convened an emergency meeting to coordinate their response. In the near-dark recording he told residents:
He did not provide a detailed damage assessment and said temporary housing had not been set up for displaced people."The enemy has shelled the civilian city of Belgorod. Everyone knows we have no military targets. There has been serious damage. I have been out to look around."
Separately, the governor of the neighbouring Bryansk region reported that strikes by HIMARS rockets and drones targeted energy facilities, cutting power to some settlements. Gladkov later said crews were working to restore electricity but that full service had not yet been recovered.
The incidents occurred amid U.S.-brokered peace talks. Reuters and other outlets reported the statements but were not immediately able to independently verify all claims, and there were no immediate comments from Ukrainian officials.
An unofficial Russian Telegram channel, Mash, which claims contacts in security services, posted that missiles hit Belgorod — about 40 km (25 miles) from the Ukrainian border — and that power was out in parts of the city.
Belgorod and nearby districts have been regularly struck since Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Kyiv has also reported major damage to power infrastructure in recent months; Russia said earlier strikes on Kyiv in January left roughly one million people temporarily without electricity.
Reporting: Reuters. Editing: Tom Hogue and Michael Perry.
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