India, Aug. 4 -- At least seven people, including children, were killed after a drone struck a crowded beach in southern Russia, according to media reports.

A video shared online, which the BBC said it verified, shows a drone hurtling towards a cliffside before crashing into the beach below in a fiery explosion as tourists watched from the shore and while swimming in the sea.

The attack left at least 40 people injured, with 17 of them hospitalised, Krasnodar region Governor Veniamin Kondratyev told the BBC.

Kondratyev accused Ukraine of carrying out "a deliberate strike on civilians."

Local residents told the BBC that no air raid sirens were heard before the drone struck.

"We covered ourselves with sun loungers, and didn't see where ...