Ukrainian attacks in Russia's Belgorod, Kursk oblasts leave over 20,000 without power

Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

Ukrainian attacks in Russia's Belgorod Oblast left over 20,000 people in the region without power, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov claimed on Nov. 8.

Gladkov said that an evening attack caused widespread blackouts in the city of Belgorod and the village of Dubove but caused no casualties. He also claimed that Ukrainian forces launched a cross-border raid into Belgorod Oblast.

The Russian Telegram news channel Shot reported that the city of Belgorod was attacked by multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) and that debris from intercepted weapons struck a local thermal power plant.

Footage of the alleged attack shows fires breaking out in multiple garages. Emergency responders are reportedly extinguishing the blaze.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify these reports at the time of publication.

Belgorod Oblast borders Ukraine's Sumy, Kharkiv, and Luhansk oblasts and is regularly used as a staging area for Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory.

Russian Telegram channels also reported that a electrical substation had been set ablaze in the community of Korenevo in Russia's Kursk Oblast following a Ukrainian strike in the evening of Nov. 8. Power outages were reported in the region following the attack, although it was not immediately clear as to how many consumers had been affected.

Russia has ramped up its assault on Ukraine's energy infrastructure in recent weeks, repeatedly targeting the country's power grid, gas facilities, and heating systems in an attempt to maximize civilian suffering ahead of winter.

Overnight on Nov. 8, Russia launched a mass drone and missile attack against Kyiv and other cities, damaging critical facilities and triggering another wave of emergency power cuts. Following the attack, Ukraine's state-owned energy company Centrenergo reported that all of its thermal power plants (TPPs) are down — including those that had been restored after Russian strikes in 2024.

In September, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Ukraine would retaliate against Russia's energy sector if Moscow continued to target Kyiv's power grid.

According to a phone call intercepted by Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) on Oct. 13, a Belgorod Oblast resident complained that life in Russia is "simply hopeless" amid regular Ukrainian drone strikes and power outages.