ReportageIn this city located near the border with Ukraine, some residents express a form of weariness towards the “special operation” led by Moscow. But they are careful of any questioning.
A few days have already passed, but the pile of rubble remains imposing, in the middle of what used to be a living room, walls and windows now open to the four winds. Here and there, children’s toys. Boxing gloves, probably those of 11-year-old Kirill. Roller skates, a pink backpack – the possessions of Alisa, 7 years old. That night of July 2-3, when a missile from Ukraine fell on this central district of Belgorod, in southern Russia, the little girl came out crying, covered in dust, at 3 a.m.: “Where are we going to live? »
No family member was injured, but the house, built only five years ago at 23 Mayakovsky Street, will be razed to the ground. Ditto for the one, too damaged, of the grandfather, Alexander Kaidalov, busy digging through the debris. It is he, 70 years old, who recounts the dread of that night, the deafening noise, the breath, the torn door which falls on the marital bed, his fear for his grandchildren.
The projectile was probably fired from Ukrainian territory, 30 km away. According to the Russian military, the city’s air defense systems destroyed three Tochka-U type missiles; only ” debris “ would have fallen on the city. Judging by amateur videos showing a very strong explosion, but also by the damage caused for tens of meters around, at least one of the shells exploded.
No questioning of Moscow
At the point of impact, two houses were completely destroyed, including the one where a Ukrainian family from Kharkiv lived, the Olekseenkos, who had taken refuge in Belgorod since March. Five people died, including the two children, 16 and 21. In all, thirty-nine individual houses were damaged, and eleven buildings. Until now, villages in the Belgorod oblast had been targeted, military infrastructure or fuel depots affected, but the July 3 bombardment marked an additional stage, and caused a shock.
“We have known for a long time that this is not a “special operation”comments Tatiana Kaidalova, the daughter-in-law of old Alexander, cleaning a piece of flower garden with her shards of glass. We now understand that this is happening to us…” This 45-year-old woman admits to being taken aback: “We were aware of being exposed, due to our geographical location. But we imagined that the affair would be over quickly… Like Georgia, like Syria…”
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