Dozens of Russian soldiers captured in escalating Kursk conflict
On Wednesday evening, Ukrainian and Russian media reported that during an ongoing offensive in the Kursk region in Russia, dozens of Putin's soldiers were captured. The prisoners were taken near the village of Gogolevka, close to the border with Ukraine. Several hundred more soldiers were reported to have surrendered.
7:18 AM EDT, August 8, 2024
The information about taking Russian prisoners was first reported by the commander of the 24th Special Operations Brigade "Aidar," Stanislav Bunyatov, codenamed "Osman." He stated that the brigade captured about 40 soldiers of the Russian Armed Forces near the border with Ukraine.
Journalist Alexander Nevzorov later confirmed this information. In both instances, the publications were accompanied by photographs showing dozens of people in uniforms lying on the ground.
"Hundreds of Russian soldiers surrendered," Nevzorov wrote.
The only discrepancies concern the location where the Russians were said to have been captured. The Astra channel claims it was near the village of Gogolevka, while Insider UA says the prisoners were taken near a checkpoint in Sudzha.
Meanwhile, the Unian agency published a video showing about 22 more Russian soldiers surrendering.
Neither Moscow nor Kyiv officially comments on these reports.
Remember, on August 6, the Ukrainian armed forces launched an attack on the Kursk region. By the morning of August 7, the Ukrainian army had taken ten villages. The total area of the Kursk region territories captured during the assault is 35 square miles.
Moscow claims the attack was repelled, but Russian propagandists' statements contradict this. A state of emergency has been in effect in the region since Wednesday.
The Russian army is also said to have lost control of the Sudzha gas measurement station, which provides about half of Gazprom's supplies to Europe, and the town of the same name is now operationally encircled.
According to the Military Informant channel, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have increased their reserves, and for the Russian side, "there is a very serious possibility" of losing Sudzha.
Meanwhile, the Rybar channel, whose sources are close to the Russian Ministry of Defense, reports that the situation in the Kursk region "is still deteriorating," and the Russian army's attempts to push back the Ukrainians "have failed."
