{"id":194341,"date":"2026-07-02T19:54:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T16:54:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/194341\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T19:54:20","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T16:54:20","slug":"russian-envoy-claims-ukraine-targeted-belarusian-bus-valfovic-calls-strike-happenstance-remark-removed-from-state-broadcasters-website","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/194341\/","title":{"rendered":"Russian envoy claims Ukraine targeted Belarusian bus, Valfovi\u010d calls strike happenstance; remark removed from state broadcaster\u2019s website"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n The bus traveling back to Belarus after the incident.\n <\/div>\n \n
\n (news.by)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

July 2, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Boris Gryzlov, the Russian ambassador to Belarus, described today\u2019s incident involving a Belarusian bus in Russia as \u201ca deliberate strike\u201d by Ukraine, while the Belarusian security chief dismissed it as happenstance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to media reports, a drone exploded in front of a Belarusian passenger bus at a parking lot in Russia, though no one appears to have been seriously injured. The alleged Belarusian victims said they did not need medical assistance on arrival in Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is neither an accident nor a coincidence, but a carefully planned and coordinated terrorist act that can only be classified as a deliberate act of violence and aggression against the civilian population. This is a war crime that will not go unpunished,\u201d the Russian embassy\u2019s press office quoted Gryzlov as saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Alaksandar Valfovi\u010d, state secretary of Belarus\u2019 Security Council, described what happened as an accident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Belarusian bus was not specifically targeted,\u201d he told Belarusian state-run media. \u201cIt was simply a bus traveling through the Bryansk province by chance, and a drone happened to crash on the road between two highways.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The official urged Belarusians not to visit Russian provinces near the border, saying that \u201cdrones fall there every day, and such unfortunate incidents occur.\u201d The bus was carrying people who had decided to spend their holiday on the Black Sea, yet \u201cby traveling there, they are undoubtedly putting themselves in great danger,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notably, Belarus\u2019 state-run television channel ONT<\/em> removed Valfovi\u010d\u2019s remarks from its website shortly after publishing them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

News.by<\/em>\u00a0posted footage of the bus, showing that the vehicle in motion without any noticeable damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia\u2019s Investigative Committee said it filed criminal charges against the Ukrainian army over an attack. Belarus\u2019 top officials have not yet commented on the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russian Telegram channels were the first to report the attack, including several that claim access to insider information and are widely believed to have links to Russian intelligence agencies. These sources blamed the incident on Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ukraine\u2019s Center for Countering Disinformation has denied Ukraine\u2019s involvement, accusing Russian propaganda of blaming Ukraine without providing any evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

News.by<\/em> reported that at around midday \u201ca drone crashed into the vehicle\u201d while it was parked in a parking lot near the village of Krasnaya Gora in Bryansk province, noting that 19 passengers were on board. The Belarusian state-controlled news outlet published an interview with a representative of Stalica, the bus operator, who said that no one was injured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Russian sources alleged that two drivers, both from the Homiel region, sustained minor injuries and received medical treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusians travelling on the bus have been transported from Russia\u2019s Bryansk province to Belarus, Yegor Kovalchuk, the acting governor of Bryansk province, said on Telegram. He blamed the attack on Ukraine, noting that two drivers were treated for shrapnel wounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kovalchuk was also the first official to report another attack in the province on June 17.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On that day, a drone struck a Belarusian tour bus carrying 44 passengers, including 28 minors enrolled in a soccer program, killing Viktoryja Haro\u0161ka, the wife of a coach at the Re\u010dyca sports school for children, and injuring six others, including five children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While warning against drawing premature conclusions, Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka blamed the strike on a Ukrainian drone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine denied any involvement, stating that Ukrainian forces had not used unmanned aerial vehicles against targets in Russia\u2019s Bryansk province on the day the bus was hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The UN Security Council on June 29 called for an impartial investigation into the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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