Kursk [Russia], December 21 : At least six people including a child were killed in a Ukrainian rocket attack on a town in Russia's Kursk region, The Moscow Times reported, citing authorities.
In an initial video message on Telegram, Kursk region's Acting Governor Alexander Khinshtein, who was meeting with federal lawmakers in Moscow, accused Ukraine of deliberately choosing peaceful sites and public facilities as their targets. He said that the attack took place on Friday evening in Rylsk, which has a population of less than 15,000 people.
Khinshtein said, "I've already sent the acting chairman of the [Kursk region] government, Alexei Dedov, and his deputies to the site [of the rocket attack]," adding that emergency service personnel were responding to the incident," The Moscow Times reported.
Later on Friday, he confirmed reports that five adults and one child were killed in the strikes, which he said were conducted using US-made HIMARS rockets. As many as eight people, including a teenager, were injured, and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Khinshtein said, "I am sure that the perpetrators of this bloody crime will receive well-deserved retribution." He stated, "Our army and law enforcement agencies will do everything necessary for this."
Videos that surfaced online showed the aftermath of Friday's strike on Rylsk, with several cars engulfed in flames and multiple buildings badly damaged, The Moscow Times reported.
Speaking to RIA Novosti, Rylsk district head, Andrei Belusov, said that facilities used by the people were among the buildings that were targeted in the town. Belusov said that "around 15 strikes" were reported in the attack, the report said.
The Kremlin or Russia's Defence Ministry has not yet issued a statement. Ukraine has also not issued any statement on the rocket attack.
Earlier on Friday, Russia conducted a missile strike on Kyiv in what it termed as retaliation for a strike using Western-supplied missiles on a chemical plant in Russia earlier in the week. One person was killed and nearly a dozen others were injured in that attack.
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