Two people were wounded on Thursday when a drone hit Russia’s southwestern city of Belgorod near Ukraine, regional officials said.

“An unknown device exploded in Belgorod,” regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram.

“According to preliminary data, a UAV fell onto a road,” he said, referring to an unmanned aerial vehicle.

The governor said two men were injured and one of them was hospitalised with a suspected concussion.

Belgorod Mayor Valentin Demidov said the explosion went off near a petrol station, adding the blast took place “not far from the ground.”

Local officials were inspecting nearby buildings to see if they were damaged, Demidov said.

The Belgorod region, bordering Ukraine, has in recent weeks been hit by multiple strikes from across the border and seen attempted incursions from armed anti-Kremlin groups.

Earlier Thursday, the defence ministry in Moscow said that Russia used jets and artillery to thwart an attempt by Ukrainian troops to “invade” the region of Belgorod.

AFP