Russian officials vowed revenge against Ukraine for a series of airstrikes that left 14 people dead and dozens wounded Saturday, according to reports.
Russia called a meeting of the UN Security Council to accuse Ukraine of targeting civilians in the city of Belgorod with drones and missiles. The attack would “not go unpunished,” the Kremlin said.
The airstrikes came a day after Ukraine said it shot down dozens of Russian missiles on nearly 120 cities and villages, leaving 39 dead and wounding 159 people, according to Ukraine leader Volodymyr Zelensky, who announced the casualties on X Saturday.
Belgorod lies about 19 miles from the border with Ukraine and has been repeatedly struck by what Moscow says is indiscriminate shelling by Ukrainian military forces.
Russia’s emergency services say that airstrikes killed two children and 12 adults.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry, which has repeatedly railed against Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, accused the US and Britain of “inciting the Kyiv regime to commit terrorist actions,” according to reports.
In Ukraine, the country’s emergency crews continued to search through the rubble of a maternity hospital and a residential building Saturday after Russia launched more than 150 missiles and drones Friday.