Ukraine said on Wednesday it had detained nine people including five teenagers on suspicion of preparing sabotage attacks on behalf of Russian security services.

Kyiv says it has thwarted a growing number of sabotage plots planned by Ukrainian children on the orders of Moscow.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said the operation was carried out in four regions and that it detained nine people including five aged between 14 and 15.

It said some of the suspects were planning to plant explosives near residential buildings or railway lines, including with improvised explosive devices, adding agents had seized more than 30 kilograms (66 pounds) of explosives.

“The issue of bringing the juvenile defendants to justice is being resolved,” the SBU said in its statement.

The suspects were “recruited” on Telegram with the promise of cash rewards, it added.

The SBU in March accused Russia of blowing up two teenage boys it had recruited to make bombs and plant them near a Ukrainian railway station.

Moscow and Kyiv frequently accuse each other of recruiting civilians to carry out sabotage attacks, often on railway infrastructure, offering financial incentives and grooming them via social media.