Moscow, June 15 (IANS/DPA): Russian authorities said on Saturday that seven people have been killed by Ukrainian shelling on the Russian border region of Belgorod.

Four bodies were pulled from the rubble of a partially collapsed apartment block in the town of Shebekino, the civil defence said.

One woman who was rescued later died in hospital, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram.

The building had been damaged on Friday after Ukrainian attacks on Shebekino.

Shebekino lies around 5 kilometres from the border with Ukraine. Most residents have left the town.

On the other side of the border sits the Ukrainian town of Vovchansk, around which Russian and Ukrainian troops are currently engaged in fierce fighting.

Gladkov also reported one death each in the Russian towns of Oktyabrsky and Murom. Shebekino was shelled again on Saturday.

Ukraine has been fending off a large-scale Russian invasion for more than two years. The border region of Belgorod serves as a deployment area and logistics base for Russian troops. The eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv is also attacked from there.