Russian Officials Say Ukrainian Drone Attacks Kill 3 in Belgorod, Injure 19 on Bus

Three people were killed and at least 19 others were injured on Tuesday after a series of Ukrainian drone strikes targeted Russia’s Belgorod border region, according to Russian authorities, further escalating cross-border tensions between Moscow and Kyiv.

Regional officials said two people died when a drone struck a business in a village near the Ukrainian border. A separate drone attack on a town outside Belgorod city claimed the life of another civilian.

One of the most serious incidents occurred in the border town of Shebekino, where a bus came under drone attack. Authorities said 19 people were injured, with all but one requiring hospital treatment. The strike prompted strong condemnation from Russia’s Foreign Ministry, which accused Ukraine of deliberately targeting civilian transportation.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova alleged that Ukraine has repeatedly attacked public buses in Russian regions, describing the latest incident as evidence of what she called a campaign against civilians. She claimed the attacks reflected Kyiv’s response to what Russia described as setbacks on the battlefield.

Russian-installed officials in the occupied Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine also reported a separate drone strike on a bus on Tuesday, saying five people were injured. The incident added to a series of recent accusations by Moscow that Ukraine has increasingly targeted civilian vehicles in Russian-controlled territories.

Russian authorities also referenced a previous attack last month involving a bus transporting Belarusian children to a holiday destination. Moscow said the strike killed one woman and injured six children, blaming Ukrainian forces for the incident.

Ukraine has denied responsibility for those allegations. The Ukrainian military rejected Russia’s claims regarding the earlier bus attack, calling them false and maintaining that it does not intentionally target civilians.

The latest accusations and drone attacks underscore the continuing escalation along the Russia-Ukraine border, where cross-border strikes have become more frequent as the conflict enters another intense phase. The incidents are likely to heighten diplomatic tensions while raising concerns over the growing impact of the war on civilians living near the front lines.