Kursk: The recapture of Sudzha, the largest town Ukraine had occupied in Russia’s Kursk region, marks another significant gain in Russia’s ongoing offensive to reclaim territory seized by Ukrainian forces.
Reports indicate that the battle for Sudzha was one of the most intense in the more than three-year-long conflict. Before the offensive, Sudzha had an estimated population of around 5,000, but the town has now suffered extensive damage due to prolonged hostilities.
Ukraine’s top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, stated on Thursday that Russian airstrikes on Kursk had been so relentless that the town is almost completely destroyed.
In recent weeks, Russian forces have regained control over much of the area Ukraine had captured following its unexpected cross-border incursion into the Kursk region in August last year.
The acting governor of the Kursk region, Alexander Khinshtein, announced on Saturday that authorities have begun planning reconstruction and development efforts in areas reclaimed from Ukrainian control. According to Khinshtein, immediate priorities include clearing landmines and restoring the population to pre-conflict levels.
Additionally, the Russian Defence Ministry reported that its engineering units have commenced demining operations in the recaptured border areas of the Kursk region. The ministry emphasized that these efforts aim to restore essential infrastructure and facilitate the resumption of economic activities following intense combat.
Also Read | Starmer’s ‘Coalition of the Willing’: 10,000 Troops to Support Ukraine
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s northern city of Chernihiv came under attack from multiple Russian drones overnight, according to Dmytro Bryzhynskyi, head of the Chernihiv City Military Administration. The strikes targeted residential high-rise buildings, igniting fires that were later extinguished by emergency responders.
Bryzhynskyi also confirmed that a drone struck a five-story building and caused damage to private houses in the area. In a separate incident in the Chernihiv region, Ukrainian authorities reported that a Russian ballistic missile crashed near the border town of Semenivka, causing a partial power outage.
