Russian-installed authorities in the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk reported on May 16 that a Ukrainian drone strike targeted a student dormitory in the city of Starobilsk, killing at least four people. Governor Leonid Pasechnik said the five-story dormitory of Luhansk Pedagogical University was hit by a drone during the night, causing the building to collapse down to the second floor.
According to Russian officials, about 86 students and teachers were inside the dormitory at the time of the incident. At least 35 people were wounded, three of them in critical condition, with some victims trapped under the rubble. The victims were aged between 14 and 18.
Al Jazeera correspondent Yulia Shapovalova in Moscow reported: 'Rescue workers continue to pull wounded children and bodies from the rubble, despite the risk of repeated drone attacks.'
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov condemned the incident, calling it a 'monstrous crime.' 'This is a monstrous crime. An attack on an educational facility where children and young people were present,' Peskov said. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova asserted the attack was 'deliberately' targeting children.
Four drones were used by Ukraine to strike the dormitory and other buildings in Starobilsk, according to the Russian Investigative Committee. Moscow has launched a criminal investigation. Images released by Russian authorities showed rescue workers carrying a man from the rubble of heavily damaged buildings, some appearing partially collapsed, with fires still burning.
Ukraine has not yet commented on the report. Both Russia and Ukraine have denied targeting civilians during the conflict, now in its fourth year.
In a related development, the Russian Defense Ministry said 217 Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight across Russia. The sustained Ukrainian attacks are believed to have 'negatively impacted' Russia's domestic oil and gasoline production, risking significant disruption to the Russian economy and its ability to continue the war, analysts say.
News of the attack in Luhansk came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed retaliation for a recent Russian airstrike on Kyiv that killed 24 people.
