Use of cluster munitions reported after attack on Russian-occupied Luhansk in Ukraine | News on the Russia-Ukraine war

Information on casualties is being clarified after air strikes caused fires in the occupied eastern Ukrainian city.

The Russian-occupied city of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine has been repeatedly targeted by air strikes, according to local authorities. They reported the use of cluster munitions, which are banned in many countries.

The two airstrikes within three hours early Tuesday followed at least three attacks by the Ukrainian military on Luhansk and neighboring areas in recent weeks, mainly targeting fuel depots.

Leonid Pasechnik, the Russian-appointed governor of Luhansk region, said the first attack at around 9 p.m. (18:00 GMT) was carried out with cluster munitions and that fires had broken out as a result of the attack.

He said information about the victims was currently being clarified.

Ukraine and Russia have been criticized for using cluster munitions on the battlefield. Many countries have banned these munitions because of the long-term danger they pose to civilians.

The United States is supplying Ukraine with cluster munitions and has said they are being used “effectively” by Ukrainian forces as part of their counteroffensive against the Russian invasion.

Al Jazeera could not independently confirm the reports about the battlefield or the weapons used.

Injuries and fires reported after strikes

The Russian news agency TASS, citing emergency services, said injuries had been reported following Tuesday’s attacks.

Ukrainian media and war bloggers published a picture of what they described as a large fire in the city.

A Russian Foreign Ministry official said there appeared to be a second attack in the same area of ​​the city at midnight.

Rodion Miroshnik, a special envoy for the ministry, said residents of the city heard two explosions in the same district as the site of the first attack.

“It cannot be ruled out that the repeat attack occurred at the site where rescue teams are dealing with the consequences of the previous missile attack,” Miroshnik wrote on Telegram.

Ukrainian news agencies reported that the target of the second attack was an airfield and published a video of a fire spreading over a wide area.

Ukraine made no official comment on either incident.

Russia annexed the Luhansk region along with three other regions several months after its invasion in February 2022, although it does not fully control any of them.

Large parts of Luhansk have been occupied since 2014, when Russian-backed separatists took over large parts of eastern Ukraine.