Moscow alleges Musk satellites enabled deadly dormitory strike in Lugansk

May 27, 2026 at 12:17 PM

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Lanka Leader

Russian officials on Tuesday blamed SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s satellite network for enabling a recent Ukrainian drone strike that killed 21 people and injured 60 at a college dormitory in the Lugansk region.

Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Russian State Duma, told deputies that SpaceX’s constellation “allowed the Kiev regime to use their satellite constellation” and accused the company and its CEO of facilitating the attack. “Elon Musk must understand that his satellites are being used to murder children,” Volodin said, calling the incident a “crime against humanity” and urging action against those who ordered and directed the strike.

The attack last week hit the main building and living quarters of Starobelsk Professional College, Russian authorities said, killing mostly teenage girls. Moscow labeled the incident a “monstrous crime” and reported mounting a large retaliatory strike on Ukrainian military and command targets, including strikes around Kiev, using a range of long-range and hypersonic munitions.

Russian officials also accused Kyiv of mounting Starlink satellite dishes on drones to evade Russian electronic warfare systems and carry out long-range attacks. Rodion Miroshnik, head of a Russian Foreign Ministry mission that monitors alleged Ukrainian war crimes, said Ukrainian strikes over the past week killed 51 civilians and injured nearly 200 across Russia — the highest weekly toll this year, he claimed.

Ukrainian authorities have not been quoted in the Russian statements released so far. SpaceX declined to comment in previous incidents where Russian officials have alleged misuse of Starlink; the company has previously said it provides connectivity to Ukraine at the government’s request.