Russian authorities evacuated 93 children from the western city of Belgorod after an alleged Ukrainian attack on the city, Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Jan. 10.
Gladkov said the children would be taken to a "recreational camp" in neighboring Voronezh Oblast that will have an "interesting educational and leisure program."
Late on Jan. 8, Gladkov claimed that Russian air defenses downed 10 aerial targets over Belgorod, resulting in three people injured by falling debris.
Kyiv has not claimed responsibility for the purported strike, which came the same day as Russia launched a large-scale missile attack against Ukraine.
Regional authorities in Belgorod Oblast, bordering Ukraine's Sumy, Kharkiv, and Luhansk oblasts, often claim strikes by Ukrainian forces.
A Dec. 30 attack on Belgorod allegedly killed 25 people and injured over 100. Ukraine did not claim responsibility. Several Ukrainian media outlets reported that Ukrainian forces struck military facilities in Belgorod on Dec. 30, citing anonymous sources in Ukraine's intelligence services.
Debris from the used weapons fell in the city center "due to unprofessional actions of the Russian air defense," according to the sources.
The series of incidents have caused some residents to leave the city, which has a population of some 340,000 people. Belgorod Mayor Valentin Demidov announced on Jan. 6 that church services on the eve of Russian Orthodox Christmas would be canceled "due to the operational situation."
Kate Tsurkan
