Key facts
- Two people were killed in Ukrainian drone strikes in Russia's Belgorod region on Thursday.
- One person died when a drone struck a car.
- A subsequent strike killed one person and injured three.
- Reuters could not independently verify the reports.
Two people were killed in Ukrainian drone strikes on Thursday in Russia's border region of Belgorod, regional officials said. The regional operational headquarters reported one person died when a drone struck a car. A later evening strike killed one person and injured three. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. The Belgorod region has been a frequent target of Ukraine's forces.
Separately, on March 18, two people were killed and four others were wounded in a Ukrainian air strike on Russia's Belgorod region, the head of the region's administration, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on Telegram. Gladkov said one of the two victims was a 17-year-old boy, while one of the wounded was a young girl pulled from under the rubble. Ukraine has not commented on the attack, which could not be independently confirmed. Russia's Defense Ministry earlier on March 18 said the Belgorod region had been targeted by 10 Ukrainian Vampire missiles, all of which were shot down by air defense systems. Meanwhile, air-defense systems shot down 17 of the 22 drones launched by Russia at several Ukrainian regions early on March 18, Ukraine's military said in a statement on Telegram. The drones were destroyed over nine Ukrainian regions, and regional authorities in Sumy said civilian infrastructure was damaged in the city of Konotop.