At least 11 people were killed and 15 others were injured after gunmen attacked Russian military training ground on Saturday, Reuters reported quoting the defense ministry. 

The shootings happened during a live-fire training exercise in the Belgorod region.

The Russian Defense Ministry said two men opened fire at volunteer soldiers during a target practice session in western Russia, killing 11 of them and wounding 15 others before being killed themselves. 

The ministry called the incident a terrorist attack.

“During a firearms training session with individuals who voluntarily expressed a desire to participate in the special military operation (against Ukraine), the terrorists opened fire with small arms on the personnel of the unit,” RIA cited a defense ministry statement as saying.

The ministry said that the two shooters were nationals from a former Soviet republic and had been shot dead after the attack.

This is seen as another setback to Russian President Vladimir Putin who has been suffering humiliating defeats.

The assailants opened fire on a group who had volunteered to take part in the war, the RIA news agency reported. After Putin ordered mobilisation, this has caused anger across the country and also triggered an exodus of hundreds of thousands of Russians unwilling to participate in the war.

Russia has lost ground in the nearly seven weeks since Ukraine’s armed forces opened their southern counteroffensive.

--Agencies