LUGANSK, June 9. /TASS/. Ukrainian troops attempted a missile attack on Lugansk’s administrative quarters but the missile was shot down, Andrey Marochko, a retired colonel of the People’s Militia of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), told TASS on Friday.

"Lugansk’s air defense system hit a missile fired by the enemy. Preliminarily, Ukrainian troops tried to hit Lugansk’s administrative quarters. Along with government buildings, there is a park and a children’s playground, which is always crowded," he said.

"Data on possible damage is being verified," he added.

The explosion rocked Lugansk at around 6:49 p.m. Moscow time. Traces of an air defense system’s operation were seen in the city’s central and southern parts. According to eyewitnesses, fragments of the missile fell down near Lugansk’s Kosior neighborhood.