Massive inferno rages on as Ukraine missile strikes Russian-held oil depot

A massive fire has engulfed an oil storage depot in the Russian city of Belgorod, just north of the Ukrainian border, after what Russia claims was an attack by two Ukrainian helicopters.

The incident, which occurred on Friday morning, has sparked outrage and condemnation from Moscow, which accused Kyiv of violating its sovereignty and escalating the war in eastern Ukraine.

According to Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov, the two Ukrainian Mi-24 helicopters entered Russian airspace at extremely low altitude and launched a missile attack on the civilian oil facility, which is run by state-owned oil giant Rosneft.

He said that some storage tanks were damaged and caught fire, but denied that the facility had any military significance. He also said that no one was killed in the attack, but two people were injured and nearby residents were evacuated.

However, Ukraine’s top security official Oleksiy Danilov denied any involvement in the attack, calling it a “provocation” by Russia to justify its aggression against Ukraine.

He said that Ukrainian aircraft have not struck targets in Russia previously, and that the video footage circulating on social media, which appeared to show rockets hitting the oil depot, was fabricated.