MOSCOW, Feb 27 (Reuters): About 50,000 people were left without power in the Russian city of Belgorod on Friday after Ukrainian missiles struck it overnight, the regional governor said.
Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said about half of those affected should be reconnected by the end of Friday following the latest in a series of attacks that have caused repeated blackouts.
Belgorod, which lies about 40 km (25 miles) from the border with Ukraine, has been a frequent target of Ukrainian drone and missile strikes in the four years since Russia invaded its neighbour.
"Serious damage has occurred with energy infrastructure," Gladkov wrote on Telegram. "As a result, there have been disruptions to supplies of power, water and heating."
There was no immediate comment from Ukrainian officials. Residents of Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities have frequently lost heating and power in the coldest weeks of winter because of Russian attacks on Ukraine's power grid.
Along with the neighbouring Kursk region, parts of which were seized by Ukraine in a surprise attack in August 2024 and held for many months, Belgorod has borne the brunt of Ukrainian cross-border strikes since the start of the war.
Meanwhile, Ghana's foreign minister said Friday that 55 Ghanaians had been killed while fighting in Ukraine, among hundreds of Africans said to have been lured to fight there for Russia.
"We were informed that 272 Ghanaians are believed to have been lured into battle since 2022 for which an estimated 55 have been killed and 2 captured as prisoners of war," minister Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa said on X.
He called the news "depressing and frightening", speaking after meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart in Kyiv.
"We cannot turn a blind eye to these heartbreaking statistics. These are not just numbers, they represent human lives, the hope of many Ghanaian families and our nation," Ablakwa wrote.
Ukraine said on Wednesday that more than 1,780 citizens from 36 African countries had been identified among Russia's ranks.
Ablakwa said the government was "committed to tracking and dismantling all dark web illegal recruitment schemes operating within our jurisdiction."
