MOSCOW, May 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The death toll from a Ukrainian strike on a college in a Russian-occupied town in eastern Ukraine has risen to 10 dead and 38 wounded, with 11 students still missing, local Moscow-backed authorities said Saturday.

"Rescuers worked through the night clearing the rubble in Starobelsk. Unfortunately, hopes were not fulfilled -- the death toll has risen to 10. The total number of casualties is 48 people. The whereabouts of 11 students are still unknown," said occupied Lugansk regional governor Leonid Pasechnik after Friday's strike.