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Two people carried out a terrorist attack on Saturday during a shooting training session at a military training ground in the Belgorod Region, the Russian Defense Ministry told reporters. The attackers killed at least 11 eleven people, and wounded another 15, officials said.
“On October 15, two citizens of a CIS country committed an act of terror at training range of the Western Military District in the Belgorod Region,” the ministry said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that the terrorists opened fire using small arms at the unit’s military personnel during a shooting training session. The shootings occurred as volunteers trained to fight in Ukraine.
The two who fired on the other soldiers were shot dead by return fire, officials said. It was unclear whether their deaths are included among the 11 confirmed dead. The two were nationals from a former Soviet republic, the ministry said, but did not give any other details.
The Moscow-based Baza news website reported that the shooting took place at about 10 a.m., but it only became known in the evening.
The motive for the attack is unclear.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization on September 21, sparking protests, attacks on recruitment offices, and the flight of huge numbers of men out of the country.
Putin said on October 14 that Russia should be finished calling up reservists in two weeks, promising to end the mobilization after the conscription of more than 200,000 men to fight in Ukraine.
Reported by Tass and RFE/RL.
