‘Ukraine shelling’ collapses Russia apartment building, kills 8

An apartment block partially collapsed in the Russian border city of Belgorod on Sunday, leaving at least eight people dead and 20 others injured. Officials blamed Ukrainian shelling for the building’s destruction.

Online footage showed rescuers searching for survivors among the remnants of the building’s stairwell, then fleeing the scene as part of the roof crashed to the ground. Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry said eight bodies had been recovered from the rubble so far.

Russia’s Investigative Committee, the country’s top law enforcement agency, said the 10-storey building had been hit by Ukrainian shelling.

The Russian Defence Ministry wrote on social media the building had been damaged by fragments of a downed Tochka-U TRC missile. It also said air defences had shot down several more rockets over the Belgorod region, as well as two drones that were destroyed in a separate incident on Sunday.

Authorities say eight bodies have so far been recovered from the rubble of the apartment block in Belgorod, Russia. Photo / AP

Air raid alerts continued across Belgorod as rescuers worked. The city also came under fire on Saturday evening, killing one person and wounding 29 others, Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.

Cities throughout western Russia have come under regular attack from drones since May last year, with Russian officials blaming Kyiv. Ukrainian officials never acknowledge responsibility for attacks on Russian territory or the Crimean Peninsula.

Russia's top law enforcement agency says the 10-storey block was hit by Ukrainian shelling. Photo / AP

The Belgorod region, on Russia’s western border, has been the target of many strikes. Although most cross-border shelling is seen in rural areas, attacks have been seen on the region’s capital. In December, shelling in the heart of Belgorod city killed 25 people, prompting authorities to start erecting public shelters.