As reported by AFP, the governor of the Belgorod region of Russia, which borders Ukraine and has become the object of intensified Ukrainian bombings, proposed on Friday to evacuate residents of the regional capital who wish to do so.

“Starting today, we are ready to transport you to Stary Oskol and Gubkine (the settlements further from the border, no), where you will be accommodated in very comfortable conditions, in warm and safe rooms,” Vyacheslav Gladkov said in Telegram, addressing more than 300,000 residents of Belgorod.

“Put duct tape on the windows”

Tensions are rising in the city of Belgorod, located near the border with Ukraine, and local authorities on Friday asked residents, for the first time since the start of the war, to shield their windows to protect themselves from shrapnel in It faces continued shelling from Ukraine, BMF TV reported.

“Rescuers of the Department of Emergency Situations recommend to tape the windows. This is a good way to protect yourself from the blast wave: the glass will not break into small fragments,” Belgorod City Hall recommends in the Telegram account, quoted by News.ro.

Belgorod was attacked again on Thursday evening / Putin’s reaction

The Russian city of Belgorod became the target of a new series of Ukrainian bombings on Thursday evening, a few hours after schools in the region were ordered to extend their vacation due to the risk of new attacks, AFP and Agerpres inform.

Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said at least two people were injured in the latest attack, and Telegram channels broadcast images of damaged cars in the city.

“According to preliminary data, there are two victims. One man received a shrapnel wound in the forearm, the other received a shrapnel wound in the shin,” he said.

“Our air defense system operated over the city of Belgorod and its district. 10 aerial targets were shot down on the approach to the city,” Gladkov added.

Although the Kremlin tried to hide the reality of the war from its population for almost two years, the attack on the city of Belgorod on December 30 showed that Russian territory and the civilian population could be drawn into the conflict. This is the largest number of deaths in Russia since February 24, 2022, when the invasion of Ukraine began: 25 dead and about a hundred wounded in this city with a population of 335 thousand inhabitants, located 50 km from the border with Ukraine.

Belgorod was attacked a day after a massive bombing of Ukrainian cities killed 55 people, including at least 32 in Kyiv, the deadliest toll for the Ukrainian capital since the start of the war.

On Thursday, after the terrorist attacks of the previous days, the regional authorities of Belgorod were forced to extend the holidays in the schools of the municipality and neighboring settlements. Technical colleges and universities located in affected communities are advised to hold remote sessions and, if necessary, extend vacations.

After the Ukrainian strikes on Belgorod, Russia, which killed 25 people on December 30, Vladimir Putin sent the following message: “Ukraine cannot attack us without consequences,” she says.

Against the background of this Russian campaign, the head of Ukrainian diplomacy, Dmytro Kuleba, called for the West to speed up the supply of “additional air defense systems, combat drones” and “missiles with a range of more than 300 kilometers.”

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