Russia says that Ukraine has launched an incursion into Kursk Oblast
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Wednesday, September 11, 2024
On Tuesday, Russia said that 300 Ukrainian soldiers launched an incursion into the Russian, Kursk Oblast. According to Russia, the 22nd Mechanised brigade led the incursion along with "11 tanks and more than 20 armoured fighting vehicles." Ukraine has not released on statements pertaining to the accusations. The governor of Kursk declared a state of emergency in Kursk Oblast due to the incursions.
Fighting was reported in a town six miles from the Russo-Ukrainian border, called Sudzha. Fighting was also reported in the towns of Nikolayevo-Daryino and Oleshnya. Footage online, verified by the BBC, showed low-flying fighter jets flying with smoke rising from parts of the ground. Russian officials said that five civilians were killed and 24 wounded during the incursion. Local officials said that at least 31 people were killed by shelling. Russian state-run media said that at least 28 people were killed in the area.
Russia said that the incursion was repelled, saying that "After suffering losses, the Ukrainian sabotage group retreated to its territory, while some of the fighters tried to gain a foothold directly on the territory adjacent to the state border, where they were blocked by Russian army units." The statement was later changed to "the enemy is being inflicted with fire damage." Acting governor of Kursk Oblast Alexei Smirnov said that the attack was repelled, with three Russian civilians dead and eighteen injured, although he later said on Telegram that the situation "remains tense." He also said on Wednesday that, in the past day, thousands of people had left the area of the incursions. On Wednesday, Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces said that "the advance of the Ukrainian Armed Forces deep into Russian territory has been stopped" as well as saying that Russia is "continuing to destroy the adversary in areas directly adjacent to the Russian-Ukrainian border." The Russian Ministry of Defense said that "the enemy's movement further into Russian territory had been prevented", while also saying that fighting was continuing. Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said multiple people were injured in Ukrainian air attacks and issued missile attack warnings on Tuesday.
A Russian military blogger named Rybar said that the situation around Sudzha was "continuing to deteriorate" and "judging by the latest footage, Ukrainian formations have managed to advance." He also said that they had captured a gas transit station, which he was the only one where the gas goes from Russia, to Ukraine, and then to Europe. Blogger Yuri Kotenok said there was "heavy" fighting near Sudzha and Korenevo. Russian military blogger Alexander Kots said on Telegram that "very specific brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces" participated in the incursion, that it was "not a sabotage and reconnaissance group, not a terrorist squad, but regular troops of a neighboring state. And they do not hide this."
A Ukrainian junior official stated that an attack was underway that had not been defeated. The head of an anti-disinformation department at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, said that "Russian soldiers are lying about the controllability of the situation in the Kursk region. Russia does not control the border." Authorities in Sumy Oblast said they were evacuating 6,000 people. Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Honcharenko said on Wednesday that the Ukrainian army had taken over Sudzha gas hub. Ukrainian Colonel Vladislav Seleznyov said that the incursion was "preventative" with around 75,000 Russian soldiers gathering near the border.
Russian president Vladimir Putin said Ukraine had launched a "massive attack" involving "indiscriminate shooting from various types of weapons, including missiles, at civilian buildings, residential buildings, and ambulances", which was a "large-scale provocation." Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the incursions were "barbaric" and that "we call on the international community not to stand by and to resolutely condemn the criminal actions of the Kyiv regime."
The Institute for the Study of War said it found footage on Tuesday of armored vehicles 4.3 miles from the Russo-Ukrainian border that were damaged and abandoned.
Valery Gerasimov said that up to 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers were participating in the incursion. He also said that 100 Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 54 armoured vehicles were destroyed (including seven tanks). The Russian Ministry of Defense said the incursion included 260 militants and 50 units of armoured vehicles.
People have speculated online that the purpose of incursion is to reach Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, 35 miles from the Russo-Ukrainian border.
Oleksiy Honcharenko said that "from a military point of view, we are trying to take back the initiative" and that "we are showing the world that the world should not be scared of escalation or the reaction of Putin. There is no reaction." He also said that "For the first time since the Second World War, Russian territory that is internationally recognised is occupied and Putin did not [turn] to nukes and so on." While not knowing what the "plan" was, Honcharenko said on Facebook that the incursion will show that "Russia can and needs to be attacked."
A White House spokesperson said that the United States had didn't know beforehand about the attack and that it planned to talk to the Ukrainian military "to learn more about their objectives."
A Ukrainian security source said that Ukraine used a drone to hit a Russian helicopter. Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak said on social media that Russia had used their "border regions with impunity for massive air and artillery attacks."
Sources
[edit]- James Waterhouse, Brad Dress. "State of emergency declared as Ukraine launches raid into Russia" — Yahoo! News Canada, August 8, 2024
- Ivana Kottasová, Darya Tarasova, Daria Tarasova-Markina. "Russia says Ukrainian troops crossed into its territory and launched ‘massive attack’" — CNN, August 7, 2024
- News Wires. "Thousands evacuated as Ukrainian troops launch attack in Russia's Kursk region" — France 24, August 7, 2024
- Dan Sabbagh. "Moscow says Ukraine has launched cross-border attack inside Russia" — The Guardian, August 6, 2024