The Russian Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine on its northern side, was attacked on Monday by Russian forces fighting on Ukraine’s side. Mass evacuations are underway.
“The Russian Volunteer Corps and the ‘Free Russia’ Legion, organizations composed of Russians who fight on the Ukrainian side, crossed the border with Russia and attacked border posts in Russia’s Belgorod region. The attack was preceded by artillery preparation. Fierce fighting continues on the border. ‘Legion Liberty of Russia’ informs that they managed to completely liberate the settlement of Kozinka, and the assault troops entered the village of Grajworon. We have regular fights conducted by Russian troops supporting Ukraine on Russian territory,” Mateusz Lachowski, a Polish war correspondent in Ukraine, said on Monday. The Russian Volunteer Corps and the “Freedom of Russia” Legion announced the liberation of Kozinka and Gora-Podol. They added that they had entered the Russian town of Grajvoron and called on residents of Russia’s border regions to stay home and “not resist.” The legion fighting on the side of Ukraine also recorded a video in which they call on Russians to fight for a Russia free from Vladimir Putin. On Monday morning, the militants of the Russian Volunteer Corps reported on their Telegram channel that they were in Russia. The recordings showed soldiers standing in front of signs with the names of towns in Russia’s Bryansk and Belgorod regions. The aforementioned Russian formations fighting on the side of Ukraine are officially independent of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Russian oblast bordering Ukraine under attack. The evacuation in the Belgorod region is underway
According to the governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, “sabotage and reconnaissance groups of the Ukrainian Armed Forces entered the Grajvoron district. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, together with the border guards and the National Guard and the FSB, are taking the necessary measures to eliminate the enemy.” Earlier, Gładkow reported that several villages near the town of Grajworon had been shelled by the Ukrainian side.
Panic broke out among the inhabitants of the region. As reported by the Kyiv Post correspondent, Jason Smart is undergoing a mass evacuation, lines of cars are lining up to leave Belgorod. The Russians could hear such a message on the radio: “Residents of Belgorod, we urge you to evacuate quickly. Staying in Belgorod is not safe. Belgorod will be free”. According to the Russian state agency Ria Novosti, three people were injured by shrapnel as a result of the actions of military groups.
In the opinion of Jarosław Wolski, this operation is “negligible” militarily, but “propaganda makes a lot of sense.” Thanks to it, Russian forces, among other things, must focus on newly attacked areas, which means that they will be spread over a larger area.
Attack on the Belgorod region. Peskov: Putin has been informed
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “the Ministry of Defence, the FSB and the Border Service informed the President of the Russian Federation – Commander-in-Chief about the attempt to break the Ukrainian sabotage group in the Belgorod region. Work is underway to push them out of Russian territory and to destroy this sabotage group“. In his opinion, the said attack was carried out in order to divert attention from Bakhmut, which had practically already been occupied by the forces of the Russian Federation.
Source: gazeta.pl
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