The governor of Russia's Belgorod region declared a state of emergency on Wednesday due to an increasingly dire situation in the border area, which has been under heavy Ukrainian shelling.
Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov announced the decision on the messaging platform Telegram, citing the severity and tension caused by ongoing Ukrainian military actions.
The region has witnessed significant destruction, with homes leveled and civilians either killed or injured as a result of the attacks.
To enhance protection for residents and offer more substantial support to victims, the state of emergency will be enforced starting Wednesday.
The Belgorod region, located on the border with Ukraine, has recently come under attack from Ukrainian drones targeting the villages of Shebekino and Ustinovka.
In addition, the neighboring regions of Kursk, Voronezh, and Bryansk have reported that Russian air defenses intercepted drones from Ukraine overnight.
Since August 6, Ukraine has launched a large-scale offensive in the Kursk region, which borders Voronezh.
Ukrainian forces have claimed control over more than 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory.
On Monday, Russian authorities admitted that Ukrainian troops had penetrated up to 12 kilometers into Russian territory, occupying a swath of land 40 kilometers wide and taking control of 28 towns.
An analysis by Agence France-Presse (AFP) based on data from the US-based Institute for the Study of War and other Russian sources revealed that Ukrainian forces had captured at least 800 square kilometers of Russian territory by Monday.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russian forces have seized control of regions in southern and eastern Ukraine while subjecting Ukrainian cities to relentless missile and drone attacks.
According to AFP, Russian forces have captured a total of 1,360 square kilometers of Ukrainian land since February 2024.
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