Ukrainian attack sparks panic and evacuation in Kursk region

During the night, panic erupted on pro-Russian channels on Telegram, claiming a new "breakthrough" in the Kursk region and that Ukrainians had attacked a village more than 12 miles from the border. Later, the situation was reported to be less severe. However, authorities accelerated the evacuation of the area.

Much of the information provided by Russian and Belarusian media or government representatives is propaganda. Such reports are part of the information war conducted by Russia or Belarus.

During the night, reports of a "breakthrough" in the Kursk region began appearing on pro-Russian channels on Telegram. Ukrainians were said to have commenced operations around Bielaya, approximately 12 miles from the border, southeast of Sudzha. Ukrainians had not previously operated in this area.

The initial reports spoke of a "wide front." "Around the village of Bielaya, everything is occupied by the enemy. A nearby hospital was shelled by tanks," wrote the "Two Majors" channel during the night.

In the following hours, Russian bloggers tried to calm the public. They maintained that, while fighting continues, Ukrainians did not capture the village of Bielaya.

According to the "Operation Z" channel, Ukrainians were said to conduct a "force reconnaissance" from the border towards the village. They reportedly had several tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and armored vehicles.

"To suppress enemy activities, aircraft from the Russian Aerospace Forces were called in and conducted shelling," bloggers reported. Ukrainians were said to have lost "several armored vehicles."

The well-known WarGonzo channel run by blogger Semyon Pegov stated that "increased enemy activity was confirmed," and Russian aviation was involved in the fighting.

"In the settlement of Bielaya itself, as people on the ground report, there is no talk of any fighting. Unfortunately, the population, unaccustomed to this type of war, often has incorrect perceptions of what battles look and sound like when they are near populated areas," he said.

Aleksandr Kharchenko from the Telegram channel "Witnesses of Bayraktar" published a video from the center of Bielaya. He asserted that fights are taking place some distance from the village and that battle sounds can sometimes be heard, but in the settlement itself, "there is no enemy." He added, "As I was coming here, something was indeed shot down in the sky, but it was most likely a drone," he said in the video.

The situation seems tense enough for the authorities to take additional actions. Acting governor of the Kursk region, Aleksey Smirnov, ordered the acceleration of the evacuation of the area where Ukrainians are reportedly operating.

"I am in contact with the Russian Ministry of Defense and other security agencies. Necessary security measures are being taken, and I have instructed the head of the Bielovsky district to accelerate the implementation of the operational command's evacuation decision," he announced.