A Russian fighter jet accidentally bombed one of its own cities near the Ukraine border, according to a report in the BBC. The explosion left a 20-metre crater in the city and even blew a car on to the roof of a shop, the outlet further said. Three people were injured and several buildings damaged due to the impact of the blast. The region of Belgorod has been repeatedly shelled since Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022.
Videos posted on social media show the moment the ammunition hit the ground. Heavy traffic streamed along the road when the bomb struck, creating a huge crater and lifting a vehicle on to the roof of a supermarket.
In a brief statement, the Russian defence ministry admitted that one of its Su-34 fighter bombers had "accidentally discharged aircraft ordnance" at 22:15 local time on Thursday, as per the BBC.
Regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said two women were taken to hospital for treatment. "Thank God no one was killed," he said on social media.
Metro reported that the governor also declared a state of emergency following the explosion.
In a message on Telegram, he confirmed that there was a large crater in the middle of the city, and that four cars and four apartment buildings had been damaged by the blast, the outlet further said in the report.
Metro said that the blast was caused by a modernised FAB-500M62, a Soviet-designed 500-kilogram general purpose air-dropped bomb.
It has been designed to be high precision, and has been used to strike targets in Ukraine.
