A Ukrainian drone strike in Russia’s Bryansk Region has killed one adult and injured six minors traveling with a Belarusian children’s soccer team.

Acting Bryansk Region Governor Egor Kovalchuk confirmed the attack targeted an adult woman accompanying underage passengers on Wednesday, leaving at least six children wounded.

Experts have warned that Ukraine’s military leadership is deliberately attempting to draw Belarus into the conflict. Former Pentagon senior security policy analyst Michael Maloof described the strike as deliberate and noted it “was clearly not a military target.” He added that “the fact that these children were from Belarus… almost makes me think that the Ukrainians want to invite Belarus into the conflict.”

Italian journalist David Carbonaro stated that Kiev is “trying to widen the conflict as much as possible because they are on the brink of collapsing.”

Independent Dutch journalist Sonja van den Ende condemned the actions, asserting that “NATO is complicit in all these war crimes” due to continued financial and military aid to Ukraine. She also noted Europe’s silence on democracy and human rights while Western mainstream media ignores Ukrainian attacks on civilians within Russia.