Russia-Ukraine war: 11 killed in shooting at Russian military base in Belgorod

11 people were killed in a shooting at a Russian army base in the border city of Belgorod. Moscow has since launched an investigation into the incident amidst fighting in the eastern and southern territories of Ukraine.

According to the news outlet RIA, the Russian defense ministry said two gunmen opened fire Saturday during a firearms training exercise in Belgorod, the city near the Ukrainian border. The gunmen reportedly targeted a group that volunteered to fight in Ukraine and were also shot dead.

The shooting over the weekend follows the blast that partially damaged the Kerch Strait bridge, which linked mainland Russia to the annexed Crimean peninsula the previous weekend.

The ministry said the assailants were from a former Soviet republic but did not disclose further details. Senior Ukrainian official Oleksiy Arestovych said the two men were from the mainly Muslim nation of Tajikistan and shot others over an argument over religion.

“As a result of the incident at a shooting range in Belgorod region, 11 people died from gunshot wounds and another 15 were injured,” said the Russian Investigative Committee upon announcing the probe but did not give other details.

Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of Belgorod, said no local residents were among those who were killed and wounded. However, two witnesses told Reuters that they saw Russian air defense systems repel strikes taking place in Belgorod and Gladkov said two people were wounded from the shelling.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin said Friday last week that Moscow should be done enlisting its reserved troops in two weeks’ time, pledging to end the partial mobilization that has led to backlash and a mass exodus of people fleeing to avoid getting drafted.

Russia continues to bombard Ukraine as Ukrainian forces continue to make advances in the partially-occupied territories.

Ukrainian electricity firm Ukrenego said over the weekend that Russian missiles hit a key energy facility near the capital Kyiv. Ukrenego said repair crews were being dispatched to restore power but warned residents of further outages amidst the ongoing repairs.

Moscow ordered a widespread air strike on civilian targets in Ukraine following the blast at Kerch bridge, the largest coordinated attack on Ukraine since its invasion back in February.