In a devastating attack on the center of the Russian border city of Belgorod, 14 people, including two children, were killed and 108 others were wounded, according to Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry. The shelling occurred on Saturday, just a day after Ukraine experienced an 18-hour aerial bombardment that resulted in the deaths of at least 39 civilians.

Russian officials swiftly accused Kyiv of carrying out the attack, adding to the escalating tensions between the two neighboring countries. Images circulating on social media depicted the aftermath of the assault, with burning cars and billowing black smoke surrounding damaged buildings. Air raid sirens echoed through the city as one strike hit near a public ice rink in the heart of Belgorod.

Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov described the consequences of the attack as the most severe the city has faced since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago. Notably, previous attacks on Belgorod have occurred mostly at night and resulted in fewer casualties, making this incident particularly alarming.

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed to have identified the ammunition used in the assault as Czech-made Vampire rockets and Olkha missiles equipped with cluster-munition warheads. However, the ministry did not provide any additional information, and the accuracy of its claims could not be independently verified.

In response to the attack, Russia's Kremlin stated that President Vladimir Putin had been briefed on the situation. The country's health minister, Mikhail Murashko, was also ordered to join a delegation of medical personnel and rescue workers en route to Belgorod from Moscow.

Russian diplomats sought a meeting of the United Nations Security Council to address the strike. Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, accused Britain and the United States of encouraging Kyiv to carry out what she deemed a "terrorist attack." Zakharova also placed blame on European Union countries that had supplied Ukraine with weapons.

Meanwhile, earlier on Saturday, Moscow reported shooting down 32 Ukrainian drones over the Moscow, Bryansk, Oryol, and Kursk regions. Two additional deaths were reported caused by cross-border shelling in Russia. A man died and four others were injured when a missile struck a private home in the Belgorod region on Friday evening. In a separate incident, a 9-year-old child was killed in the Bryansk region.

Cities in western Russia have been under frequent drone attacks since May, with Russian officials consistently accusing Kyiv. Ukrainian officials have never claimed responsibility for attacks on Russian territory or Crimea. However, it has been observed that larger aerial strikes on Russia previously followed intense assaults on Ukrainian cities.

In retaliation, Russian drone strikes continued on Saturday, with the Ukrainian Armed Forces' General Staff reporting the downing of 10 Iranian-made Shahed drones across the Kherson, Khmelnytskyi, and Mykolaiv regions. Local officials also confirmed three casualties, with a 55-year-old man in the Kherson region, a 43-year-old man in Stepnohirsk (a town in Zaporizhzhia region), and a 32-year-old individual in the Chernihiv region losing their lives due to Russian missile attacks.

The aggression by Moscow forces intensified on Friday when 122 missiles and numerous drones were launched across Ukraine. One air force official described this assault as the largest aerial barrage witnessed during the ongoing conflict.

As tensions between Russia and Ukraine continue to escalate, the international community is closely observing the situation, urging all parties involved to exercise restraint and seek a peaceful resolution.