Russia Accidentally Bombs Belgorod, Its Own City, Injuring 3

A Russian warplane accidentally dropped a bomb on one of its own cities, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Friday. The blast, which was shown on video near an apartment block, injured three people and spread panic in the large city on the border with Ukraine.

The first reports came on Thursday night that an explosion had ripped through the center of Belgorod, a southern Russian city of 400,000 just across the border with Ukraine. Widely circulated video footage showed smoke and flames near the intersection where the car drove through, sending the parked vehicle spinning through the air.

Allegations initially fell on Ukraine: Since the start of the war last year, Russian authorities have blamed Kyiv for secret attacks on railway bridges and other strategic targets in Belgorod. The attack had put Belgorod on edge; some residents said they were worried the Ukrainians might attack.

But on Friday morning, Russia’s Defense Ministry issued a statement saying the explosion was caused by “accidental inflight munitions” by a Russian fighter jet flying over Belgorod at around 10 a.m. on Thursday. The jet was identified as the Su-34, considered one of Russia’s most advanced aircraft.

Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of Belgorod region, said three people were injured, including one with a concussion. The blast shook a nearby apartment building so much that local authorities decided to evacuate.

“Thank God no one was killed,” Mr Gladkov said in a video posted on the social messaging app Telegram.

The Ministry of Defense said the incident was under investigation.

Boris Rozhin, a military analyst and pro-Russian blogger, suggested in a post on Telegram that the crash could be the result of a fault in the GPS guidance kit installed in the ammunition carried by the Su-34. Ukrainian officials and military analysts say Moscow is using the kit in an effort to turn unguided munitions into cheap substitutes for precision aerial weapons.

The kits are still “raw” and easily damaged, possibly causing accidents like the one in Belgorod, Mr. Rozhin wrote.