NewsMissile attack or accident? Fatal building collapse in Belgorod stirs tensions
Missile attack or accident? Fatal building collapse in Belgorod stirs tensions
8:48 AM EDT, May 12, 2024
In the Russian city of Belgorod, near the border with Ukraine, a portion of a ten-story residential building collapsed on Sunday. The governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, accused Ukraine of launching the attack. According to Russian authorities, there were fatalities, and at least a dozen people were injured.
Initially, official sources reported only the injured. However, the Russian Investigative Committee later announced that there were fatalities as well, though the exact number was not specified. The latest reports from state-run Russian agencies and media mention 13 injured individuals.
Earlier, the casualties were unofficially reported by Telegram channels Baza and Mash, stating four and seven people, respectively. There were also reports of people trapped under the rubble.
Russia blames Ukraine
Local authorities have attributed the cause of the building's collapse to a Ukrainian attack. Governor Gladkov stated it resulted from "a direct hit by a missile."
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the building was not hit directly by a missile but rather by fragments of a Ukrainian Tochka-U missile that air defense forces had shot down.
Independent television Nastoyascheye Vremya noted that the exact cause of the building's collapse remains unknown. In Belgorod, an air raid alarm was activated five times from the morning on Sunday.
