Russia accuses Kyiv of using U.S. ATACMS missiles to hit civilian targets in Luhansk

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Russian Defence Ministry on Friday accused Ukrainian forces of firing five U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles at the Russian-controlled eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk in an attack it said had wounded 20 people, including children.

Separately, Leonid Pasechnik, the Russia-installed governor of the region, said on the Telegram messenger app that three people had been killed in the strike and that the total number of victims had risen to 35, including three children.

The Defence Ministry said in a statement that its air defence systems had shot down four of the five missiles, but that one of the missiles had damaged two residential apartment blocks, something it alleged was deliberate.

Pasechnik said 33 buildings had been damaged, including two schools and three kindergartens. He said rescuers were continuing to pull people from the rubble.

Reuters was unable to immediately verify the assertion and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew Osborn)