KHARKIV: Russia has launched a fresh bombing on Ukrainian regions in the hours leading into New Year’s Eve, Ukrainian authorities said, attacking Kyiv and inflicting damage on residential areas of the city of Kharkiv.
Ukraine military officials said that the country’s air defense systems were engaged in repelling Russia’s strike. However, the potential damage of the strike was not immediately clear.
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The development comes as the death toll from the missile attacks on Belgorod, Russian has climbed to 20, the emergency situations ministry of Russia said Saturday. This makes Saturday’s assault one of the lethal on Russian land since Russia launched hostilities against Kyiv in February 2022.
Belgorod, situated approximately 30 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, has been a frequent target of what Russia claims to be indiscriminate shelling by Kyiv’s forces. Unverified footage circulating on social media shows the aftermath of the strike, with debris scattered across the streets, burnt-out cars, and billowing smoke.
The statement came as the UNSC prepared to begin an emergency meeting on the attacks, called by Russia.
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Earlier, local media reported that 14 people were killed, and 108 others were injured as a result of a Ukrainian strike on the Russian city of Belgorod. The attack occurred just a day after Russian strikes on Ukraine killed dozens. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been briefed on the incident, and the Russian Defense Ministry warned that the attack would “not go unpunished.”
This strike comes amid continued violence in the region, with rescuers in Ukraine working to sift through rubble following the intense Russian attacks that killed at least 39 people the previous day. Ukrainian military sources reported that Russia launched 158 missiles and drones, with 114 of them successfully intercepted—a record number for the conflict.
