Three killed in Ukrainian missile strike on Russian region – governor
Three people have been killed in a Ukrainian missile strike on the Russian city of Oryol, Governor Andrey Klychkov has said.
The bodies were recovered from the rubble of a civilian enterprise targeted by Kiev on Friday, Klychkov announced on Saturday.
According to the governor, Ukrainian forces used NATO-made missiles in the attack. He shared photos of missile fragments bearing markings in English as evidence of their alleged Western origin.
Klychkov did not specify the type of weapons used, although Russian military bloggers earlier claimed that Kiev had fired British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles.
The governor condemned Friday’s strike as “especially cynical,” saying it took place during rush hour, when people were returning home from work to their families.
Ukrainian attacks continued overnight, with Russian air defenses downing 15 drones over the region, according to Klychkov. A new missile alert was issued on Saturday morning.
Oryol, a city of nearly 290,000 residents, lies approximately 368km southwest of Moscow.
Moscow has repeatedly warned that Western arms supplies, intelligence sharing, and targeting assistance to Kiev make NATO countries direct participants in the conflict. In August, Russia cautioned London that British military facilities and equipment, both in Ukraine and elsewhere, could become legitimate targets in retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory using UK-supplied weapons.
Russia has accused Kiev of deliberately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure to compensate for battlefield setbacks as Moscow’s forces continue to advance.
In response to Ukrainian terrorist attacks, Russia has intensified long-range missile and drone strikes against Ukraine’s military facilities and infrastructure supporting Kiev’s war effort. Moscow maintains that its forces do not target civilians.
