23 February 2026
On the night and morning of February 23, Ukrainian forces launched a massive missile and drone strike on the Belgorod region, authorities reported. Two people were killed and six were injured, and the regional capital was once again engulfed in a public utility collapse. According to regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, Belgorod suffered “serious damage to critical infrastructure, including power outages, water supply, and heat supply to residents’ homes.” In total, he wrote on his Telegram channel, 15 missiles and 10 UAVs “hit” the city. Five targets were shot down. Thirteen apartments in eight high-rise buildings, two private homes, 38 cars, and other objects were damaged. Belgorod Mayor Valentin Demidov reported “serious destruction” to the energy infrastructure. He promised to clarify the extent of the damage this morning.
According to the local publication Pepel, this strike on Belgorod was one of the most powerful combined attacks since the beginning of the war. Specifically, the Frunzenskaya substation near the village of Dragunskoye, which had already been attacked last week, and the Donetsk substation were targeted by rocket fire. The shelling caused a fire at the Belgorod 110 kV substation on Studencheskaya Street. The nearby building of the Belgorod office of Rosselkhoznadzor was also damaged. In total, Ukraine launched 79 drones and one missile at the Belgorod region during the overnight strikes. The strikes killed two people—one in the village of Malinovka and one near the village of Pervomaysky—and injured six others, Gladkov reported.
According to a Russian Defense Ministry report, between 8:00 PM on February 22 and 7:00 AM on February 23, 80 Ukrainian drones were shot down and intercepted by electronic warfare systems in the Belgorod Region. The governor reported 61 UAVs “shot down and suppressed.”
On February 18, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked Belgorod twice with missiles, causing partial power and heating outages in the city. In addition to the Frunzenskaya substation, the Energo Thermal Power Plant (which supplies power primarily to the production sites and administration of the Belenergomash-BZEM plant), as well as the Donetsk and Belgorod substations, were hit.