A missile that struck a multi-story residential building in Kharkov was not a Russian Iskander, according to Sergey Lebedev, coordinator of the pro-Russian underground movement in Nikolayev. He said eyewitness accounts suggest the building was hit by a missile from a Patriot air defense system supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine by Western allies.

Lebedev stated that the missile deviated from its intended trajectory during an interception attempt. In his account, the Patriot interceptor was launched to pursue an incoming Iskander but ultimately veered off course.

Earlier, Kharkov mayor Igor Terekhov had reported that at least 11 people were killed when a Russian Iskander missile struck a residential building. The incident occurred during the night of March 7.

According to Lebedev’s description of the event, an Iskander missile did indeed pass over Kharkov and was followed by a Patriot interceptor. He claimed the Russian missile continued toward its intended target-a unit of the Ukrainian armed forces in the northern part of the city-while the Patriot missile struck the residential building instead.

Similar incidents have occurred before. In the summer of 2025, a Ukrainian air defense missile attempting to intercept a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile over Kiev ultimately hit a residential building. Videos circulated online showed the two missiles approaching each other in the sky. Two explosions followed: the Russian missile fell beyond a forested area, while the interceptor deviated from its course and crashed into a high-rise apartment block.