Deserted Sudzha and twisted versions of Russian border breach: Kursk region today
Photo: Sudzha in Kursk region is almost completely destroyed, fighting continues in the Russian border area (Russian media)
Russia claims that fighting continues in the Kursk region, which allegedly broke out in the border area yesterday. Russian propaganda says that the Ukrainian military has already “occupied” several settlements, and the town of Sudzha has been almost completely evacuated.
Contents
- Fighting continues: What is happening in Kursk region
- Evacuation in Sudzha, shelling
- ISW: Russians report twisted versions of events
- Putin was informed of the breach
Fighting continues: What is happening in Kursk region
In the morning, Russian Telegram channels began to spread information that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had allegedly occupied the border villages of Nikolaevo-Darino, Darino, and Sverdlikovo. Russian military propagandisis reported attacks by Ukrainian forces from the following directions:
- from the Sudzha checkpoint (on the border northeast of the city of Sumy along the H-07/P-200 highway) in the direction of Sudzha and Oleshnya;
- from the village of Novenke, Sumy region (northeast of the checkpoint Sudzha and the city of Sumy) in the direction of Nikolaevo-Darino, Kursk region.
Photo: villages, which, according to Russia, were allegedly occupied by Ukrainian troops (google maps)
Military reporters also claim that Ukrainian troops are allegedly continuing to advance toward Sudzha, and the town has been evacuated.
According to Readovka, at least 70 people were in temporary accommodation centers in the Kursk region by the evening. Russia says that the Ukrainian side “continues to pull up reserves”. They say that the large number of Ukrainian air defense systems complicates the work of the Russian air force.
The Rybar Telegram channel, close to the Russian Ministry of Defense, writes about the tense situation in the village of Oleshnya, where Russian troops are almost completely surrounded and have no advantage in numbers. The Russians also claim that Ukrainian forces are accumulated in Yunakivka.
NASA satellites have detected fires in the border areas of the Kursk region, where fighting may be taking place. The map below shows numerous outbreaks in the region over the past day, as recorded by Earth observation satellites.
Photo: NASA data for the past day in the area of Sudzha and the border (firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov)
Evacuation in Sudzha, shelling
Meanwhile, the number of requests for help in evacuating relatives from the settlements that have been left without communication is increasing in the local Telegram channels. Local authorities are calling for blood donations. The acting governor of the Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, wrote on Telegram that “the region is resisting the attacks” and emergency services “have been switched to an enhanced mode of operation.”
Photo: fighting is moving to the outskirts of Sudzha, and, according to unconfirmed reports, there are clashes in Goncharovka (Google maps)
Local authorities reported that “two missiles and four drones were shot down over the Kursk region” at night. In total, the missile threat was announced twice during the night. Russian Telegram channels reported that the number of people injured in the shelling had risen to 28.
Russians also reported about shelling in other regions. In Shebekino, Belgorod region, two drones hit an apartment building and started a fire. Two drones also attacked Voronezh, damaging the facade of a high-rise building and cars.
ISW: Russians report twisted versions of events
Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War have noticed different versions of the Russian Defense Ministry and local authorities on what is happening in the Kursk region. Smirnov and several Russian military propagandists reported that “fighting continues” in the border areas of the Sudzhansky and Korenevsky districts of the Kursk region, contrary to the statements of the Russian Ministry of Defense and the FSB, which claimed that the alleged breakthrough attempts had been repelled.
The Russian Ministry of Defense and the FSB claimed that yesterday “several raids carried out by the Armed Forces of Ukraine” equipped with tanks and armored vehicles of about a battalion size were allegedly repelled.
ISW notes that geolocation footage shows damaged and abandoned armored vehicles about 7 kilometers north of the international border west of Lyubimovka (Kursk region). While Russian sources claim that “the footage shows Ukrainian equipment,” ISW emphasizes that it cannot confirm or deny this.
Putin was informed of the breach
The acting governor of the Kursk region said in a video message that he had reported the operational situation to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone call at night. He said the Kremlin leader “keeps the situation under his personal control.”
Smirnov also said that more than 200 people have already been evacuated from the combat zone. Several thousand people left the shelling zone by private transport during the day.
Updated. The Investigative Committee of Russia opens a case under the article “terrorism”
The Investigative Committee of Russia has announced that a criminal case under the articles on a terrorist attack, murder, and attempt on the life of law enforcement officers has been opened over the “fact of the attack of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the Kursk region”.
The IC officially acknowledged that Russian servicemen were among the wounded in the border area.
Yesterday local authorities and Russian military reporters said that units of the Ukrainian Defense Forces had allegedly broken through the border in the Kursk region, which borders the Sumy region. It happened amid a massive shelling of the town of Sudzha. Russian sources admit that the Russian army has already suffered losses, including manpower, equipment, and aircraft, as well as captured conscripts. The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that it was sending its reserves to the border in the Kursk region.
There were also explosions in the town of Kurchatov, near which the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant is located. The local governor has already reported on two Ukrainian missiles that were allegedly shot down by air defense systems. However, eyewitnesses report hits on the infrastructure of the Kursk region.
Read more about possible Russian losses as a result of the "border breach" in the Kursk region in a separate RBC-Ukraine article.
Read about the possibility of the war moving to the territory of Russia in the commentary of military expert Pavlo Narozhnyy for RBC-Ukraine.
Sources: the ISW report, the Medusa article, the Readovka Telegram channel, Mash, Shot, Astra, statements by the acting governor of the Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, and other open source data.
