Ukraine reported on Sunday that an explosion, attributed to “local resistance movements,” occurred in the Moscow-controlled Ukrainian city of Melitopol the previous day, resulting in the deaths of at least three Russian officers. Melitopol, with a pre-war population of approximately 150,000, was captured shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February of the previous year and is now situated behind the front line further north.
According to Ukraine’s Defense Ministry intelligence service, the incident was a “revenge action” carried out by representatives of the local resistance movement, eliminating at least three Russian guard officers. The claims made on the Telegram messaging app could not be independently verified.
The intelligence service added that the attack on the headquarters took place during a meeting of the Russian security service (FSB) and the Russian National Guard (Rosgvardia).
Melitopol is located in Zaporizhzhia, one of the four regions—along with Donetsk, Lugansk, and Kherson — that Russia claims to have annexed, despite not having full control over them.
Ivan Fedorov, the exiled mayor of Melitopol, reported residents hearing an “explosion, which was heard in all corners of the city” on Saturday evening.
Since the beginning of the war, several officials linked to Russia have been killed in attacks in territories controlled by Moscow’s forces.