Ukraine denies Russian claim that drone strike killed civilians in occupied Luhansk Oblast
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Ukraine’s General Staff on May 22 rejected Russian claims that an overnight Ukrainian drone strike killed six people and injured dozens of children in occupied Luhansk Oblast, saying it had struck Russian military targets in the area.
Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the alleged strike, while Moscow said it had called for an emergency meeting at the United Nations Security Council.
The Ukrainian General Staff called the Russian claim "misleading information," stressing that it strictly adheres to the international humanitarian law and strikes military infrastructure and facilities used for military purposes.
Ukrainian drones attacked a dormitory and a neighboring building of the Luhansk Pedagogical University's college in Starobilsk, an hour and a half drive north of Luhansk, Russia's Human Rights Commissioner Yana Lantratova claimed earlier on May 22. She claimed that 35 children were injured in the strike.
Ukraine's General Staff said that overnight on May 22, "a number" of Russian targets were struck, including an oil refinery, ammunition depots, air defense systems, and command posts, as well as one of the headquarters of Moscow's elite drone unit known as the Rubikon Center for Unmanned Technologies in the Starobilsk area.
"For reference, 'Rubicon' is a Russian military special unit known as the 'Center for Advanced Unmanned Technologies,' whose representatives regularly carry out attacks on the civilian population and civilian facilities on the territory of Ukraine," the General Staff said in its statement on Telegram.
Putin claimed that there were no military facilities near the dormitory. Moscow said that it had called for an emergency meeting at the United Nations Security Council following the alleged strike.
Meanwhile, Russia's indiscriminate attacks across Ukraine throughout the full-scale war have killed thousands of civilians, with a United Nations report saying that April was the deadliest month since July 2025, with at least 238 killed.
Lantratova said a meeting was scheduled for the morning among Russian-installed authorities of the occupied parts of Luhansk Oblast.
Russia has often used civilian infrastructure, from schools to hospitals, as military bases throughout the war, a practice banned by international humanitarian law. Russia has also sought to militarize schools, including in occupied territories. Also on May 22, Russia's Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev announced that Russian school students who pass a drone operation test will be eligible for extra points on university entrance exams starting in 2027.
The head of Russian occupation authorities in Luhansk Oblast, Leonid Pasechnik, claimed that 84 children, ages 14 to 18, were inside at the time of the alleged Ukrainian attack. He said rescue operations are ongoing to search for missing children.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify Russia's claims independently. Due to Russia's information blackout on the occupied Ukrainian territories, it is difficult to independently report on developments there.
