(Reuters) –On Thursday, a senior Ukrainian intelligence official stated that armed organisations he characterised as Russians opposed to the Kremlin were invading Russian territory and had turned two border locations into “active combat zones”.
However, the governor of one of the Russian areas targeted by the strikes stated after visiting villages in the area that hostile forces were no longer there.
Three Ukrainian-based groups made statements stating that they were conducting armed operations in the Belgorod and Kursk districts and urging inhabitants to evacuate for their own safety.
“The Kursk and Belgorod districts are currently the scene of active combat operations. “This is what we confirm,” said Andriy Yusov, a GUR intelligence agency official, on national television.
“And as stated by the volunteers and rebels, we are talking about Russian citizens who, having no other options, are defending their civil right with arms against the Putin regime.”
Vyachslav Gladkov, governor of Russia’s Belgorod district, stated on Telegram that there were no Ukrainian military in one of the locations under attack.
“I can state that there are no Ukrainian troops on the territory of the region,” he stated in the message, which was made after midnight local time. “The fighting is taking place outside it.”
However, Gladkov stated that the settlement of Kozinka was “badly hit.” “The damage is severe. Residents have been moved to areas where they were safe.
Gladkov had stated that two persons were murdered and at least 20 were injured in attacks by Ukrainian military forces.
Russian military bloggers had alleged that Russian paratroopers had been ordered to Kozinka. The Russian Defence Ministry stated that it had repelled an attack by the Ukrainian army.
Roman Starovoit, Kursk regional governor, provided little information, but stated on Telegram that “Ukrainian terrorists have not stopped their attempts to bring saboteurs into our territory”.
One of the three armed organisations, the Freedom of Russia Legion, stated on Telegram that due to the “limited military operation” taking place in the two districts, inhabitants of particular towns were being asked to evacuate the area.
A second, the Siberian Battalion, reported “a sense of panic in the town of Grayvoron, next to Kozinka, with cars queuing to leave.”
Two of the organisations reported launching a cross-border raid earlier this week.
Russian officials have previously portrayed the groups as puppets of the Ukrainian military and the United States Central Intelligence Agency, which Moscow claims is attempting to incite turmoil in Russia.
Previously, the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps claimed responsibility for other cross-border attacks into Russia from Ukraine.
