Six killed in drone strike on college dormitory in Russian-occupied Starobilsk

A Ukrainian drone strike has hit a college dormitory in the Russian-occupied town of Starobilsk in the Lugansk region, killing six people and wounding dozens, according to Russian officials. The attack also left 15 people missing, with search operations continuing through the rubble. Russian-installed authorities said the strike damaged the academic building and dormitory of Starobelsk Professional College.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin said in televised comments that 86 children aged 14 to 18 were present at the time of the strike. He said the attack took place while students were sleeping and described it as a terrorist attack. Putin also said he had ordered the defence ministry to prepare a response, although he did not give details.

Russian officials said 39 people were wounded, and the building was reported to have collapsed to the second floor. The Russian-installed governor of Lugansk, Leonid Pasechnik, said the strike hit the college complex in Starobilsk, which lies about 65 kilometres from the front line in east Ukraine. Images released by the regional authorities showed blown-out windows and flames visible in part of the building.

Russia's foreign ministry said those responsible would face inevitable and severe punishment, while the Investigative Committee accused the Ukrainian military of firing multiple drones at the site. The incident is significant because it adds to the toll of the war in areas under Russian occupation, where civilian infrastructure remains vulnerable to attack. Ukraine regularly fires drones at Russian-controlled territory in retaliation for mass Russian strikes on its own cities, and both sides accuse each other of targeting civilians.

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The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has recorded more than 60,000 civilian casualties since 2022, underlining the scale of harm caused by the conflict. Starobilsk was captured by Russian forces in 2022 shortly after the full-scale invasion began, and the Lugansk region is almost entirely occupied by Russia, which claims it as its own. That makes the town part of a wider contested zone where military, political and humanitarian pressures overlap.

The reported presence of children at the college dormitory will likely intensify scrutiny of the strike and any response ordered by Moscow. What remains unclear is the final number of people still missing, the condition of those injured, and whether the death toll will rise as rescue work continues. It is also not yet verified independently who was inside the building at the time or what the intended target was.

Further official updates will be needed to establish the full extent of the damage and any response from Ukraine.

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