Russian-occupied city of Luhansk hit by missile strike

Several people have been injured in rocket attacks on the Russian-occupied city of Luhansk, according to official reports.

The Russian politician Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the We are Together With Russia movement, wrote on his Telegram channel on Saturday that there were missile strikes near the bus station and a machine-building factory.

Three civilians were injured and several residential buildings were damaged, he said.

Ukrainian media, on the other hand, reported that the attack was aimed at a military unit and a collection of military vehicles near the factory.

The information could not be independently verified.

Luhansk has been controlled by separatists loyal to Moscow since 2014. In February 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin initially recognized the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics as independent states and then began his war against Ukraine under the pretext of protecting Russian citizens there.

Meanwhile, in the small town of Tokmak in the Zaporizhzhya region, which was also captured by the Russians during the war, the death toll has risen to 10 following an attack on Friday.

Two more bodies were found under the rubble of a residential building, the Moscow-appointed governor for the occupied part of the Zaporizhzhya region, Yevgeny Balitsky, announced on Telegram.

Two people were still missing, he wrote, and 18 people were being treated in hospital for their injuries.

Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago and regularly shells civilian objects in the hinterland, resulting in deaths and injuries. But there are also repeated casualties from Ukrainian shelling on Russian-controlled territory.