A building destroyed by a Russian rocket strike in Sviatohirsk city during fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, on 17 December, 2022. Photo: AFP/ Celestino Arce
Ukrainian forces have shelled and hit military quarters in the Russian-occupied Donetsk region of Ukraine, killing many, reports say.
Russian officials said Ukraine sent the barrage on New Year's Eve, hitting parts of the city of Makiivka, as well as other areas.
The Moscow-installed administration of the Donetsk region said at least 25 rockets were fired at the region overnight on New Year's Eve.
Russia's TASS state news agency cited local Moscow-backed officials as saying that at least 15 people were injured in Makiivka, a major coal producing centre, in shelling that included High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) rockets.
Reuters was not able to independently verify the reports.
The Russian Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for a comment. In its daily report on Sunday, it said that it had destroyed seven HIMARS rockets, including in the area of Makiivka.
Daniil Bezsonov, a senior Russian-backed official in the Moscow-controlled parts of the Donetsk region, said there was a strike on a vocational school, which according to preliminary information was used as military personnel quarters.
He said the attack happened two minutes after midnight on New Year's Day.
"A massive blow was dealt to the vocational school from American MLRS HIMARS. There were dead and wounded, the exact number is still unknown," Bezsonov said on the Telegram messaging app.
"The building itself was badly damaged."
Drone leaves Russian region 'without power'
Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone attack damaged a power supply facility in Russia's Bryansk region bordering Ukraine, the regional governor said on Monday. There were no reported casualties.
"A Ukrainian drone attack was carried out this morning on the Klimovsky district," Governor Alexander Bogomaz said on Telegram.
"All emergency services are on site. As a result of the strike, the power supply facility was damaged, and there is no electricity."
Reuters was not able to independently verify the report.
The Klimovsky district of the Bryansk region borders Ukraine in its southern part.
-Reuters