Russia's defense ministry said today it had struck decision centers and military installations in Kharkiv, northeastern Ukraine, in retaliation for an attack on Belgorod the previous day.
"In response to that terrorist act, the Russian armed forces struck decision-making centers and military installations," the ministry said via Telegram.
Beta Agency reported earlier today that Russia carried out new drone attacks on Ukraine last night after warning that the Ukrainian attack on the Russian border town of Belgorod "will not go unpunished".
Kiev announced that residential buildings, a hotel and cafes were hit in tonight's Russian strikes.
Russia has denied targeting civilian targets since the start of the 22-month conflict.
Ukraine announced today that it shot down 21 drones out of a total of 49 that were sent to its territory last night and added that six guided missiles were also fired at the city of Kharkiv in the northeast.
Moscow's attacks followed an attack on the Russian city of Belgorod the previous day, which it blames on Ukraine.
The Ukrainian military said it registered 49 Iranian-made Shahed drones targeting the Kharkiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Zaporozhye regions, and that 21 were destroyed. It did not say whether the six rockets hit their targets.
Twenty-eight people were wounded in the attack on the eastern city of Kharkiv, regional governor Oleh Sinehubov said.
The regional prosecutor's office stated that the hotel in the city center, residential buildings, a kindergarten, shops and administrative buildings were damaged.
In the area around Kiev, a Russian drone attack caused a fire in an important infrastructure facility, local officials said without specifying what the cause was.
The Russian attacks followed last night's artillery attack earlier yesterday on the Russian border town of Belgorod, in which, according to the latest data, 24 people died, including three children.
108 people were injured in the attack on Belgrod, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said today, saying it was the deadliest on Russian soil since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine 22 months ago.
Russian authorities blamed Kiev for the attack on Belgorod, which came a day after a series of airstrikes by Moscow across Ukraine that lasted 18 hours and killed at least 41 civilians.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that it had identified Czech-made Vampir missiles and Olha missiles equipped with cluster munitions in the strike.
"This crime will not go unpunished," the ministry said yesterday via social networks.
At an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council held last night at the request of Moscow, the Russian ambassador to the UN Vasiliy Nebenzija accused Kiev of a "terrorist attack". He said that Ukraine had committed a "deliberate act of terrorism directed against civilians," Russian media reported.
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