MOSCOW: A Ukrainian drone strike overnight killed two people in Russia's Belgorod region, its governor said early Saturday.
A residential building and a barn in the village of Poroz were "completely burned down" in the attack, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said. Another residential building was severely damaged.
"As a result of the release of two explosive devices, a private residential building caught fire. Tragically, two civilians died – a woman who was recovering from a fractured femur, and a man who was caring for her," Gladkov wrote on Telegram. "The son of the deceased managed to run out of the burning house at the last moment."
He said rescue workers were on the scene and a walkthrough of the area would be conducted in the daylight hours.
Earlier, he reported another Ukrainian drone strike on the village of Istobnoye, with no casualties.
The governors of Kursk, Kaluga and Bryansk, all in western Russia, reported strikes on their regions as well.
Ukraine has stepped up its attacks on Russia in recent weeks, targeting energy sites in particular.
With his country reliant on Western, primarily US, military support to counter the Russian offensive, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been frantically urging allies to accelerate the weapons supply to his struggling, outgunned forces.
In the United States, lawmakers will vote on Saturday over whether to unlock a long-delayed US$61-billion military aid package that has been stymied by political infighting.
Zelenskyy has called it a "vitally important decision." --AFP
