{"id":24155,"date":"2024-08-13T00:10:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-12T21:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/?p=24155"},"modified":"2024-08-13T08:17:07","modified_gmt":"2024-08-13T05:17:07","slug":"ukraine-claims-to-control-1000-sq-km-of-russias-kursk-region-in-surprise-offensive-as-over-120000-russians-flee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/ukraine-claims-to-control-1000-sq-km-of-russias-kursk-region-in-surprise-offensive-as-over-120000-russians-flee\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine claims to control 1,000 sq km of Russia\u2019s Kursk region in surprise offensive as over 120,000 Russians flee"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ukraine\u2019s top military commander has claimed that his forces now control 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of Russia\u2019s neighboring Kursk region in the biggest cross-border incursion in two-and-a-half years of full-scale war. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt this point in time, we have nearly 1,000 sq km of Russian territory under our control,\u201d Ukraine\u2019s Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi said in a video posted Monday to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy\u2019s Telegram channel. \u201cThe troops are fulfilling their tasks. Fighting continues actually along the entire front line. The situation is under our control,\u201d Syrskyi said in the video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the first time a Ukrainian military official has publicly commented on the gains of the lightning incursion that has embarrassed the Kremlin. Russian forces are scrambling to respond to the surprise Ukrainian attack after almost a week of fighting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kursk residents recorded videos pleading for help, lamenting they had to flee the border area, leaving behind their belongings. Retired Gen. Andrei Gurulev, a member of the lower house of the Russian parliament, criticized the military for failing to properly protect the border. \u201cRegrettably, the group of forces protecting the border didn\u2019t have its own intelligence assets,\u201d he said on his messaging app. \u201cNo one likes to see the truth in reports, everybody just wants to hear that all is good.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"A<\/a>
A damaged house after a Ukrainian shelling in the city of Sudzha, Russia, on August 6, 2024. (Image Credit: Governor of Kursk\/AP)<\/sup><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Ukrainian regional officials said on August 12 that they are in control of 28 settlements in Kursk Oblast, one week after launching a surprise attack into Russian territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Zelenskyy confirms military operation inside Russia\u2019s Kursk region<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy confirmed for the first time that the Ukrainian military is operating inside the Kursk region. On Telegram, he praised his country\u2019s soldiers and commanders \u201cfor their steadfastness and decisive actions.\u201d In his first full acknowledgment of the incursion, Zelenskyy called it a \u201cdefensive action\u201d and said he had asked the security services and interior ministry to prepare a \u201chumanitarian plan\u201d for the area held by Ukrainian forces. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ukrainian operation is taking place under tight secrecy, and its goals remain unclear at the moment. However, what is certain is that the incursion delivered a blow to Putin\u2019s efforts to show that life in Russia has been largely unaffected by the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meeting of the Staff

The most important: Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported on our defensive actions on the front and our operations in the Kursk region. We are grateful to all soldiers and commanders for their resilience and decisive actions. Among other things, we\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/wYEkLGJP5Y<\/a><\/p>— Volodymyr Zelenskyy \/ \u0412\u043e\u043b\u043e\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438\u0440 \u0417\u0435\u043b\u0435\u043d\u0441\u044c\u043a\u0438\u0439 (@ZelenskyyUa) August 12, 2024<\/a><\/blockquote>