Russian occupation official in his area Kharkiv announced today the eviction of citizens from three occupied cities, where Ukraine launched a sudden counterattack.

Vitaly Gadzev, on Vladimir Solovyov’s daily program on state television, announced that the cities of Izyum, Kupyansk and Veliky Burluk were being evacuated.

Evacuation, he noted, mainly concerns Kupyansk and Izyum. “Now we learn that Veliky Burluk is being shelled from artillery, and therefore, of course, citizens are asked to leave for safer settlements,” he added.

Gadchev said that if there were problems with the resettlement of these people, he would turn to the authorities of Belgorod in southern Russia for help.

Kupyansk and Izyum are vital nodes in the supply chain for the Russian military in Donbass. Both cities are under threat from a spectacular counter-offensive launched by Kyiv, which claims to have penetrated 50 kilometers deep into Russian lines this week.

The American Institute for the Study of War previously predicted that Ukrainian forces would recapture Kupyansk within the next 72 hours.

Speaking earlier on Russian television, Gadchev acknowledged that Ukrainian forces had achieved a “significant victory” in the Kharkiv region.

^{Source: APE-MEB, Reuters}