Russian warplane accidentally strikes own city near Ukraine border

A Russian warplane accidentally fired a weapon into the city of Belgorod near Ukraine on Thursday, causing an explosion and damaging buildings, said a report by state-owned Tass news agency, citing the defence ministry. The resulting blast formed a crater measuring 20 metres across on one of the city's main streets, said Belgorod’s regional governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov. He also announced a state of emergency. Russian jets have regularly flown sorties over Belgorod since the launch of Moscow's offensive in Ukraine in February 2022. On Thursday evening, local officials reported a massive explosion in Belgorod, saying the blast had left a crater in the city centre and injured two women.

He said that as a result of the explosion, a "huge" crater some 20 metres wide (65 feet) had appeared in the city centre. Gladkov and Belgorod's mayor, Valentin Demidov, posted pictures of damage on social media. The Russian defence ministry released a statement saying a fighter aircraft had lost ammunition over Belgorod. The region of Belgorod has been repeatedly shelled since Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022. Visuals from the site of the explosion showed several damaged cars and a building with broken windows. Russia said an investigation has been initiated and some buildings were damaged in the blast.