Russian fuel depot catches fire in region bordering Ukraine

Shutterstock / Tatohra

A fuel depot in Russia's Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, caught fire after shelling on Saturday, its governor said, without specifying the origin of the shelling.

Russian border regions, including Belgorod, have accused Ukraine of attacking targets, including power lines and fuel stores, since Moscow sent its armed forces into Ukraine on February 24. There was no immediate comment from Kyiv.

"We have another shelling. One of the shells hit an oil depot in the Belgorod district. Emergency services are already battling the fire. There is no danger of [the fire] spreading," the governor of Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on social media, posting a picture of flames and black smoke rising into the air.

The local emergency service said one of 10 tanks with residual diesel fuel had been set alight, the TASS news agency reported. Gladkov said later that the fire had been put out.

On Thursday, Russian officials said Ukrainian shells had destroyed an ammunition depot and also hit a school, an apartment block and an electricity substation in the Belgorod region.

Gladkov said a customs checkpoint had also been shelled for several days in a row and that 14 shells had landed there on Saturday but caused no injuries.

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