Two civilians reportedly injured seriously at Crimea border during alleged skirmish between Russian and Ukrainian forces

Muzafar Fukala, a Crimean-Tatar community leader, says two civilians were injured on the night of August 7, when Russian federal agents allegedly clashed with terrorist suspects near the Ukrainian border in northern Crimea. Fukala told the independent television network Dozhd that a car carrying two civilians came under fire during the skirmish.

Fukala says the car was overtaken by a military van and fired upon without warning. A correspondent for Dozhd near the scene of the incident says a man and a woman with matching injuries were hospitalized in the nearby city of Krasnoperekopsk and later transferred to Simferopol. Both patients are believed to be in critical condition—particularly the driver, who was reportedly shot 3-4 times.

One of the driver's friends, a man named Bakha Aliev, told Dozhd that the attack came without warning. “It was dark everywhere, and he driving along the road. Then he says he lost consciousness and doesn't remember anything. He was a random victim,” Aliev said.

Dozhd says it has obtained video footage showing a gray Skoda car with a Crimean license plate number and several bullet holes.

Officials in Crimea declined Dozhd's request for a comment on the story.