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The decease toll from a Ukrainian onslaught connected a assemblage and its dormitory successful a Russian-occupied municipality successful eastbound Ukraine has risen to 18, Russian officials said connected Saturday (May 23, 2026).
Launched overnight connected Thursday to Friday, 1 of the deadliest Ukrainian drone barrages successful months besides wounded 42 successful Starobilsk, the occupied Lugansk region, with immoderate inactive remaining nether the debris.
The onslaught has drawn a beardown absorption from apical Russian officials, with President Vladimir Putin ordering the Army to hole a response.
Ukraine denied targeting civilians and said it had deed a Russian drone portion stationed successful the Starobilsk area.
A destroyed gathering of the Starobilsk College of Luhansk Pedagogical University pursuing a caller onslaught successful the Luhansk portion connected May 23, 2026. | Photo Credit: Reuters
Russia’s Emergency Ministry said that “two much bodies person been recovered from nether the rubble. In total: 60 victims, of whom 18 person died.”
Video shared by the ministry showed dozens of rescuers sifting done what remained of a conception of the five-storey dormitory building, present reduced to rubble.
Most of those killed and missing were young women calved betwixt 2003 and 2008, according to a database of casualties published by the Moscow-backed politician of the Lugansk region, Leonid Pasechnik.
“The portion and the full state stock the destiny of these radical and the symptom of their families,” helium said connected Telegram.
In Russia and connected the occupied territories of Ukraine, a assemblage is an equivalent of a vocational school, typically for students aged from 15 to 22 years.
Starobilsk is located astir 65 kilometres (40 miles) from the beforehand enactment successful eastbound Ukraine. It was captured by Russian forces successful the aboriginal months of the violative successful 2022.
The Lugansk portion is astir wholly occupied by Russia, which claims it arsenic its own.
‘Severe punishment’
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said connected Friday (May 22, 2026) that those liable would look “inevitable and terrible punishment”.
The UN said connected Friday (May 23, 2026) it “strongly condemns immoderate attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, wherever they occur”, adding it couldn’t verify details owed to restricted entree to the area.
Ukraine regularly targets Russian-controlled areas of the state with drones, saying the strikes are retaliation for Russian attacks.
Kyiv has precocious expanded its drone capabilities and stepped up strikes connected accepted Russian territories arsenic well, including residential areas and lipid export infrastructure.
The Russian Army said it has repelled 407 Ukrainian drones launched done Friday nighttime (May 22, 2026) to Saturday day (May 23, 2026).
The Ukrainian service said Russia has launched 124 drones overnight, of which 102 were fended off.
Moscow has launched wide barrages of missiles and drones astatine Ukraine astir regular since the full-scale violative began successful 2022, besides hitting infrastructure and causing civilian deaths.
Both countries contradict targeting civilians.
The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission successful Ukraine has recorded much than 60,000 civilian casualties since 2022, astir 90% of which were successful areas controlled by Ukraine.
The conflict, the bloodiest successful Europe since World War II, has devastated swathes of onshore successful eastbound Ukraine and forced millions to flee.
U.S.-led shuttle diplomacy aimed astatine brokering trilateral talks to extremity the warfare has stalled amid West Asia conflict.
