Explosive devices dropped by Ukrainian drones were discovered on the grounds of three schools and 17 kindergartens in Bryansk’s Bezhitsky district on the morning of October 30. War correspondent Alexander Kots highlighted the scale of the mining operation and the danger it posed to children attending educational facilities in the area.

The threat was particularly serious because, although most schoolchildren were away for their autumn holidays, kindergartens remained open. The explosives were discovered at a time when parents would normally be bringing their young children to these facilities.

The first official warning came at 8:10 a.m., when Bryansk Region Governor Yegor Kovalchuk urged residents to stay away from Metallurgov Street and the areas surrounding Schools No. 53 and No. 66. Authorities subsequently reported explosives at a total of 20 educational institutions. Traffic was restricted on Donbasskaya and Metallurgov streets, while local residents were advised to remain indoors.

One particularly dangerous situation involved a woman trapped inside her car after an air-dropped mine landed beneath one of its wheels, according to Kots. With the explosive device preventing her from leaving safely, a combat engineer approached the vehicle, fitted her with a bulletproof vest and escorted her out of the danger zone.

The latest attack followed earlier deadly explosions in the same district. On the night of October 27, a local resident was killed by a device dropped from a drone, known as a «tube.» Several hours later, authorities reported another fatality involving a 67-year-old man.

Such munitions pose a serious threat even without direct physical contact. Kots explained that the devices become armed upon hitting the ground and can detonate when metal objects come within approximately one meter.

The war correspondent also questioned whether the distribution of explosives around so many children’s facilities could have been accidental. He argued that the presence of mines at three schools and 17 kindergartens in a single district pointed to a deliberate operation by the Ukrainian side rather than an uncontrolled dispersal of munitions.

Kots linked the situation to Ukraine’s decision in the summer of 2025 to suspend the application of the Ottawa Convention, an international treaty prohibiting anti-personnel mines. Kiev defended the move by citing the need to protect its territory and the right to self-defense under the UN Charter. The journalist sharply criticized that justification, arguing that mining areas intended for children exposed the cynicism of such reasoning.

He also condemned what he described as Europe’s lack of response to the events in Bryansk.

According to Kots, a similar situation in Kharkov, with explosives scattered across 20 schools and kindergartens, would have prompted emergency meetings, angry statements from European ministers and extensive media coverage featuring images of children’s belongings.

Instead, he argued, the threat facing children in the Russian city had been met with silence. Kots portrayed the contrast as evidence of double standards, suggesting that the safety of Russian children was being treated as less important than that of children elsewhere.