Ukraine sets up administrative office in Kursk

FE Team | Published: August 15, 2024 22:32:44

Picture shows results of a Russian drone attack on Ukrainian armoured vehicles in Kursk region on Thursday — AFP

KYIV, Aug 15 (AFP/Reuters): The Ukrainian army has set up an administrative office in Russia's Kursk region, where Kyiv has been mounting a cross-border offensive, Ukrainian military chief Oleksandr Syrsky said Thursday.
"A military commandant's office has been set up to maintain law and order and meet the priority needs of the population in the controlled territories," Syrsky told President Volodymyr Zelensky in a meeting.
Ukraine forces capture large
number of Russian soldiers
Ukrainian special forces have captured a group of more than 100 Russian soldiers on Wednesday during Kyiv's cross-border incursion into the western Russian region of Kursk, a source in the Security Service of Ukraine has said on Thursday.
The 102 servicemen of Russia's 488th Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment and its "Akhmat" unit are the largest group of soldiers to be captured at the same time since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, the source said.
"They captured and cleared a sprawling, concrete and well-fortified company stronghold from all sides - with underground communications and personnel accommodation, a canteen, an armoury and even a bathhouse," the source said.
Ukraine launched its surprise push into the Kursk region on Aug 6 and has so far claimed it controlled the area that exceeds 1,000 sq km (390 sq miles).
Pictures shared by the source showed dozens of Russian servicemen sitting or lying on the ground in a concrete bunker with their helmets and weapons piled up near the walls.
The source said the captured Russian servicemen would eventually be swapped for the Ukrainian prisoners of war.
Ukraine's human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets said this week that he had talks with his Russian counterpart about an exchange of prisoners.
Ukraine and Russia regularly swap prisoners of war. The latest exchange was last month. Ukrainian officials have said that Kyiv has secured the return of 3,405 people from Russian captivity since the start of Russia's invasion in Feb 2022.
Russia captures village close
to key hub in east Ukraine
Russia said Thursday its forces had captured Ivanivka, a frontline village just 15 kilometres (nine miles) from the Kyiv-held transport hub of Pokrovsk in east Ukraine.
The Russian defence ministry said its army units "liberated the village of Ivanovka" in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, using the Russian name for the village.