Russia evacuates parts of Kursk region amid ongoing Ukrainian cross-border assault as Ukraine seizes 100 square kilometers in Russia

After Ukraine launched an incursion into the city of Sudzha, Kursk region that borders Ukraine earlier Tuesday, Moscow is making efforts to evacuate its citizens from the Kursk region on Friday and send them humanitarian aid.

Moscow declared a “federal-level” emergency in the region on Friday – four days after hundreds of Ukrainian troops poured across the border in what appeared to be the largest attack by Kyiv on Russian soil since the Kremlin launched a full-scale invasion against its neighbour in February 2022.

According to the Kremlin, Russian military and border guards have blocked Ukrainian forces from pushing deeper into the country, .

Authorities also said that Ukrainian fighters attempting to advance into the area from Ukraine’s Sumy region were being pushed back.

According to Russia, Ukrainian advances in the border area were stopped about 500 kilometres southwest of Moscow. However, military bloggers and open-source data indicate that Ukrainian troops have made gains in several areas in Kursk.

Kursk regional authorities reported on Wednesday that at least five civilians were killed. At least 66 civilians, including nine children, have been wounded in the region in three days of fighting, Russia’s Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said.

The fighting in Kursk has received considerable attention by Russian media. Much of the coverage concerned the humanitarian situation – children being taken to shelters on buses as well as people from other Russian regions gathered food, diapers and other supplies to be sent to Kursk.

Some 20 temporary shelters housing over 1,200 people were reportedly organised in Kursk. As people continue to flee the fighting, more shelters will open.

Russia and Ukraine have both suffered large civilian casualties, as Ukrainian troops advanced into Russian territory and Russian forces attacked a shopping mall.

Ukrainian military expert Oleg Zhdanov was quoted as saying that Ukraine’s incursion is aimed at strengthening the country’s position with an eye on future ceasefire negotiations.

He said controlling part of Russian territory could be used as a bargaining chip.

The Washington Post says Ukrainian forces have reportedly seized about 100 square kilometers in Russia’s western border region of Kursk since Tuesday.

The US newspaper reported in its digital edition on Thursday that an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had confirmed the Ukrainian military activity inside Russia and the seizure of land.

The newspaper quoted the adviser as saying that Ukrainian personnel took hundreds of prisoners and captured a key facility that Russia uses to send gas to European countries.

Independent Russian media on Thursday reported on a video purportedly recorded by residents of Kursk that shows them asking President Vladimir Putin for help.

The residents said the president has been misinformed about the situation on the ground and that such lies lead to death.

They contradicted Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov, who recently said the situation is under control. The residents said heavy fighting is ongoing.

Meanwhile, the governor of the Russian region of Lipetsk, neighboring Kursk, said on Friday that explosives were blown up in a Ukrainian drone attack. The governor said nine people were listed as injured.

The Ukrainian military announced that it had struck warehouses containing guided aerial bombs and other facilities near a Russian military airfield in Lipetsk.

Ukraine has continued its attacks on Russian territory, while Russia has intensified its assaults in eastern Ukraine and elsewhere.