(Reuters) – Ukrainian forces shelled the Belgorod region on Russia’s border with Ukraine on Monday, injuring at least five people and damaging houses and power lines, the region’s governor said.
The town of Shebekino in southern Belgorod was shelled three times, injuring five, governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on his Telegram messaging channel. At least five other settlements also came under fire, he said.
Late on Monday, Russia’s air defence systems shot down a drone over the town of Valuyki, Gladkov said. There was no immediate information on casualties and destruction, but emergency services were working on the site.
Gladkov said that a number of private houses were damaged in the shelling as well as a farm, infrastructure and power lines.
Both sides deny targeting civilians in the 14-month-old Russian invasion on Ukraine.
Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia and on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine, but it has said recently that destroying infrastructure is preparation for a planned ground assault.
(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; editing by Grant McCool)
