Battles amid 'Putin's election': Progress of raid on Belgorod and Kursk border regions

What is known so far (information is being updated)

(12.39 Kyiv time) Russian rebels announced a massive strike on Belgorod in an hour.

The corresponding statement was jointly made by the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps, and the Siberian Battalion.

"Urgent warning for the residents of Belgorod! Within the next hour, a massive strike will be carried out on military targets in the city of Belgorod. We urge local residents to immediately seek reliable shelter and not to go out into the streets until the attack is over. Spread this message among the residents of Belgorod - help save the lives of fellow countrymen," the statement reads.

Battles

Fighting continues at the border of the Belgorod region. The so-called Russian "war correspondents" even fantasized about a "landing of Ukrainian paratroopers," and the "presence of dozens of units of equipment, thousands of soldiers, aviation, and artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine" in the region. This fantasy was later confirmed by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

According to Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, he allegedly personally visited the border of the region at night, including the Grayvoronsky district. He claimed that the "battles are taking place outside the region," and there are no Armed Forces of Ukraine on the territory of the Russian Federation.

Gladkov added that the border village of Kozinka is "very damaged." Before that, Z-media reported that there was a battle going on in this settlement.

Photo: the village of Kozinka, Belgorod region, suffered heavily during the raid by Russian insurgents (google.com/maps)

Shelling

Meanwhile, Belgorod has been under heavy shelling since early morning. Russian propagandists report that the city was supposedly "attacked with multiple rocket launcher RM-70 Vampire." As a result of the attack, fires are being recorded, houses are hit, and cars are destroyed. Eyewitnesses are posting videos of burning cars and "hits" on a school stadium and residential building on social media.

Belgorod's governor reported two injured after the city's shelling. One allegedly has rib fractures, and the other has facial injuries from shrapnel.

The Russian Ministry of Defense, on the other hand, reports "successful" work of air defense systems and "interception of all reactive shells." There is no mention of any hits in Shoigu's reports.

The explosions in Belgorod forced Russians to interrupt the "presidential election." According to Russian Telegram channels, a missile danger was announced for 14 minutes, which disrupted the operation of the so-called polling stations.

Today drones also attacked the Kaluga region, specifically the oil refinery First Plant, which deals with oil processing. RBC-Ukraine sources in the Armed Forces have confirmed that this was a Defense Intelligence operation.

Evacuation

Earlier, Russian volunteer troops urged residents of the Kursk and Belgorod regions to evacuate urgently because of a limited military operation in the mentioned areas. A humanitarian corridor for evacuating the population was announced from 9 PM on March 14 to 7 AM on March 15.

According to the results of the evacuation, the Russian Volunteer Corps stated that over 7,000 cars of Belgorod residents passed through the humanitarian corridor for evacuation. Additionally, more than 600 cars left the city of Kursk through the evacuation corridor.

"After the expiration of the humanitarian corridor, the destruction of military objects in the Belgorod and Kursk regions will continue until the region is liberated from the forces of the Kremlin regime," the RVC added.

Considering the escalation of hostilities in Russia, the Russian Volunteer Corps, Freedom of Russia Legion, and Siberian Battalion are already urging residents of the Belgorod and Kursk regions to stay in shelters today. And if possible - to leave.

However, they say that on the night of March 15-16, a humanitarian corridor will also be provided for those willing to evacuate from the conflict zone. The corridor's duration remains the same - between 9 PM on March 15 and 7 AM Moscow time on March 16.

"For those who cannot use the humanitarian corridor and leave the area of the limited military operation in time, we recommend finding reliable shelter, refraining from walks, avoiding gatherings of people and equipment, and, if possible, staying at home or in safe places," the insurgents warned.

While local authorities previously ignored evacuation, now, as reported by Russian media, the governor of the Belgorod region has announced the evacuation of residents from 3 border villages of the Grayvoronsky urban district - Gora-Podol, Glotovo, and Kozinka.

According to him, the reason is the "complex operational situation."

Mortar fire on occupiers has already been opened

Freedom of Russia Legion released a video this morning showing them firing mortars at Putin's forces.

"Happy election day! We cast our vote for a free Russia...Sending our 'ballot' to the polling. Hope we'll make it directly to Vladimir Vladimirovich's table," says a Russian soldier.

Additionally, the FRL called on all residents of the Belgorod and Kursk regions who did not use the green corridor to stay in shelters.

Raid amid election

Today so-called three-day presidential election began in Russia. Illegal "voting" is also taking place on the occupied territories of Ukraine, which is a gross violation of international law, the principles of the UN Charter, as well as the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine.

Local undergrounds have already warned Ukrainians within the occupied territories about possible Russian provocations. Ukraine's Ministry of Reintegration called on residents of these territories to ignore the "election."

Read more about the voting procedure, "competitors," and the legitimacy of Putin's new term in an article on RBC-Ukraine.