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More than 1,700 people were evacuated from areasnear the Russian border in Ukraine's Kharkiv region on Saturday (May 11), after Russia launcheda surprise ground offensive. In a post on social media,Kharkiv governor Oleg Synegubov said, "A total of 1,775 people have been evacuated."He further said that Russianartillery and mortar attacks on 30 settlements were reported over the last 24 hours.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that a fierce battle was underway in Kharkiv. "We must disrupt Russian offensive operations and return the initiative to Ukraine," President Zelensky added. Kharkiv has been mostly under Ukrainian control since September 2022.
Ukraine earlier warned of a Russian buildup in the area, potentially signalling preparations for an offensive or a ploy to divert and pin down Kyiv's overstretched and outnumbered defenders.
In recent times,Ukrainian forces have multiplied attacks inside Russia and Russian-held areas of Ukraine, particularly on energy infrastructure.
Meanwhile, in the latest news from the Russia-Ukraine war, a Ukrainian strike on Friday nightkilled three people, injured eight, and triggered a large fire at an oil storage depot inUkraine's occupied Luhansk region.
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In a post on Telegram, Luhansk's Russian-installed governor said the injuredremained hospitalised after the attackin the town of Rovenky, 60 kilometres from the regional centre of Luhansk.
It was the second such assault in three days.
In both instances, Pasechnik suggested, without evidence, thatUkraineused US-supplied Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS).