Belgorod under siege: Federal emergency declared amidst Ukrainian advance

In Belgorod Oblast, a federal state of emergency has been declared, announced the region's governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, on his Telegram channel on Thursday.

Many of the reports provided by Russian state media or Kremlin officials are likely not true. Such reports may be part of an information war by the Russian Federation.

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The Kremlin news agency RIA Novosti reports that the decision was made following an emergency meeting of the government commission for prevention and response in emergency situations.

- In accordance with the information received during the reports, I propose to classify the emergency situation that arose in the Belgorod region as a federal state of emergency and establish a federal level of response, said the head of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations head, Alexander Kurenkov.

According to Kurenkov, the situation in the region exceeds the capabilities of local authorities Comprehensive assistance is being provided to the affected population in the region, but the scale of what is happening does not allow regional authorities to cope with the consequences on their own.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine launched an offensive operation in Kursk Oblast on Russian territory on 6 August. Kyiv's troops currently occupy an area of about 1,000 square kilometres. This is the first time foreign forces have occupied any part of Russian territory since World War II.

The Chief Commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, General Oleksandr Syrskyi, on Thursday at 15:00 GMT, informed that Since the beginning of the day, Ukrainian troops have advanced distances ranging from about 500 metres to just under 1,500 metres in certain directions, repelled three enemy counterattacks, and continue offensive operations. They have taken control of 1,200 square kilometres of territory and 82 settlements, with the overall situation under control.