Moscow accused Kiev of targeting the Russian city of Taganrog

Moscow held Kiev responsible for a missile strike in the city of Taganrog, in southern Russia, which injured at least 15 people.

“The Kiev regime launched a terrorist attack on the residential infrastructure in the city of Taganrog,” the Russian Defense Ministry said on Telegram.

Russian air defense intercepted the missile, but there were pieces of debris still flying in the sky.

On Friday afternoon, Russian authorities reported damage near a cafe in central Taganrog.

According to the governor of the Rostov region, Vasily Gulabev, 15 people were injured, nine of whom were taken to hospital for treatment.

According to Moscow, the Ukrainians were rumored to have converted the S200 anti-aircraft missile system into an offensive weapon and used it in the attack.

This however, couldn’t be verified, as Ukraine didn’t initially issue an official statement to confirm.

According to the governor of the Rostov region, Vasily Gulabev, there was no loss of life, and the police opened an investigation on the attack.

Pictures that circulated on social media show severe destruction in the street, and Video footage showed a huge cloud of smoke over the city.

Gulabiev later announced the launch of a second missile over the Azov region, not far from Taganrog.

It was reported that the wreckage fell in an uninhabited area and didn’t cause any damage.

Taganrog is a Russian city located on the Sea of ​​Azov, near the Donetsk region of Ukraine, which is under the control of Russian forces, and it’s about 120 kilometers from the front line.

The Russian Ministry of Defense and the mayor of Moscow announced that the air defense system thwarted a drone attack on the Moscow region, and that no damage or injuries occurred.

The mayor of the Russian capital, Sergei Sobyanin, announced on Telegram that the Russian defense forces intercepted a drone that tried to attack Moscow.

No damage or injuries occurred, but no other details were given, including the location of the march

This is the second time this week that Russia says that drones have been shot down over the capital, Moscow.

Kiev refused to take responsibility for the missile strikes in the city center of Taganrog.

“What is happening in Taganrog is nothing but the incompetent work of the operators of Russian air defense systems,” Oleksey Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said on Twitter.

The statement is also likely to be a rhetoric to respond in kind to what Russia says, as Moscow has repeatedly claimed in the past that it only targets military targets in Ukraine, and that the destruction in Ukrainian cities is the result of the work of Kiev’s air defense.