Former Russian Deputy PM injured in Ukrainian shelling

Moscow, Dec 22 Former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin has been injured after shelling hit a hotel in a Russian-controlled area of eastern Ukraine, the media reported.

Dmitry Rogozin, who also once led the Russian space agency - Roscosmos, said that he was hit above the shoulder blade. Another person is said to have been killed in the attack on the outskirts of Donetsk city, the BBC reported.

Vitaly Khotsenko, who heads Russia's proxy Donetsk People's Republic, was also reportedly wounded.

Rogozin is widely known for his anti-Western rhetoric and his support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

He was replaced as Roscosmos space agency chief in the summer, following suggestions that the Kremlin would give him a key role in Russian-occupied areas of eastern Ukraine. Instead he appears to lead a volunteer unit called Tsar's Wolves that provides support to Russia's proxy forces in the east.

He turned 59 on Wednesday but denied reports that he was celebrating his birthday at the local Shesh-Besh hotel, adding someone had leaked details of where he was ahead of the attack.

"It was a business meeting with a close circle of associates after returning from one of the volunteer units," he posted on social media on Thursday.

"We've been staying in this hotel all these months and in eight years the enemy never shelled this place."

An aide told Russian media the hotel had been targeted by precision-guided munitions, probably fired by a French-made howitzer.

Donetsk has been controlled by Russia's proxy authorities since 2014, who have repeatedly accused Ukrainian forces of targeting the city.

Although Russian forces have seized areas of the Donetsk region further south since the invasion began in February, they have struggled to push the Ukrainian army back from the outskirts of the city itself.