MOSCOW, Dec. 31, 2023 (BSS/Xinhua) - The Ukrainian shelling of the Russian border city of Belgorod has caused 21 deaths, including three children, and damage in 30 apartment buildings, Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, said Sunday.

 "The number of dead has increased to 21 people, of whom three are children. 110 people were injured with varying degrees of severity, including 17 children. To date, various damages have been identified in 30 apartment buildings, 344 apartments, three private households, several businesses and social facilities," Gladkov wrote on social media.

 According to a report from the Russian Defense Ministry, Belgorod and the region were shelled by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Friday and Saturday. The last one was carried out by two rockets with cluster munitions and from a multiple launch rocket system to the city center.

 The ministry said that the air defense systems intercepted rockets and most shells on Saturday and destroyed 13 rockets over the territory of the Belgorod region on Friday night.