Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed retaliation after accusing Ukraine of carrying out a deadly drone strike on a student dormitory in the Russian-occupied eastern Ukrainian city of Starobilsk.
According to Russian-backed officials in the occupied Luhansk region, at least 10 people were killed and 38 others injured in the overnight attack. Authorities said another 11 people remain missing as rescue operations continue.
Putin condemned the strike during a reception at the Kremlin on Friday, insisting there were no military or intelligence facilities near the targeted building.
“There were no military facilities, intelligence service facilities or related services in the vicinity,” Putin said. “There is absolutely no basis for claiming that the munitions struck the building as a result of our air defence or electronic warfare systems.”
He said the attack was carried out in three waves involving 16 drones and ordered Russia’s military to prepare proposals for retaliation.
However, Ukraine’s military said its forces had targeted the headquarters of Russia’s elite Rubicon drone military unit in Starobilsk. Kyiv did not confirm whether the military facility was located in the same building Moscow described as a student dormitory.
In a statement, the Ukrainian military accused the Rubicon unit of regularly launching attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure inside Ukraine.
It added that Ukrainian forces were “strictly adhering to the norms of international humanitarian law, laws and customs of war” while targeting military infrastructure used by Russian forces.
Russian state television aired footage of an injured student identified as 19-year-old Diana Shovkun, who reportedly suffered head injuries after being struck by falling concrete during the blast.
No images or identities of those reportedly killed in the strike were released by Russian authorities.
Meanwhile, Russian officials reported fresh drone attacks early Saturday in the southern Krasnodar region. Authorities said falling drone debris triggered a fire at an oil depot in the Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk.
Regional officials said several technical and administrative buildings caught fire after fragments of drones struck a fuel terminal. Two people were injured and taken to hospital, while no deaths were reported.
Drone debris also reportedly damaged residential homes in the nearby resort city of Anapa.
The latest escalation comes amid intensifying cross-border drone strikes between Russia and Ukraine.
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed Ukrainian forces had struck the headquarters of Russia’s FSB security service in the occupied Kherson region, saying around 100 Russian personnel were either killed or wounded.
Russia’s Defence Ministry has not commented publicly on the alleged strike, although a pro-Kremlin Telegram channel acknowledged there had been casualties following what it described as a “massive drone strike.”
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Kyiv has repeatedly accused Moscow of deliberately targeting civilians — allegations the Kremlin consistently denies.