Russia launches counter-terror operation over Ukraine incursion

Summary:

>Russia has imposed a “counter-terrorism operation” regime in three regions to try to halt a surprise cross-border incursion by Ukrainian troops.
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>The authorities in the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions on the border with Ukraine now can restrict the movement of people and vehicles and use phone tapping among other measures.
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>This comes as the Ukrainian offensive into the Kursk region is now in its fifth day. Kyiv has not openly admitted the incursion.
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>Reports say Ukrainian troops are threatening to seize one regional town as they fight more than 10km (six miles) inside Russia – the deepest advance since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
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>The new security measures in the three Russian border regions were announced by the National Counter-Terrorism Committee (Nak) on Friday.
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>It said this was done “to ensure the safety of citizens and suppress the threat of terrorist acts by enemy sabotage and reconnaissance units”.
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>The authorities now have powers to enter private homes, restrict the movement of traffic and pedestrians, order the temporary relocation of people and monitor information sent electronically.
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>This comes as Moscow is struggling to contain the Ukrainian offensive.
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>More than 76,000 people have already been evacuated from the Kursk region’s border areas, according to Russia’s state Tass news agency.
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>Russia said that up to 1,000 Ukrainian troops, supported by tanks and armoured vehicles, entered the Kursk region on Tuesday morning.
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>The Ukrainians have since reportedly seized a number of villages, and are also threatening the regional town of Sudzha.
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>[…]
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>BBC Verify has now confirmed that the footage was indeed from the Gazprom facility on the north-western outskirts of Sudzha, about 7km from the border with Ukraine. The video alone does not verify the claim that Ukrainian troops have taken the whole town.
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>Russian military bloggers earlier claimed that the town was in Moscow’s hands.
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>Earlier, BBC Verify checked and confirmed the location of another video posted online on Friday morning. It shows a 15-vehicle Russian convoy damaged, burned and abandoned on a road through the town of Oktyabrskoe, roughly 38km from the border on the Russian side.
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>The footage also shows Russian soldiers, some injured, possibly dead among the vehicles.Moscow has since sent reinforcements – including tanks and rocket-launching systems – to the Kursk region.
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>In its latest report on Saturday morning, the Russian defence ministry said its troops were “continuing to repel the attempted invasion” of Ukrainian forces.
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>It claimed that Ukraine’s attempts to “break through deep into Russian territory” had been foiled.
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>The Russian claims have not been independently verified.
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>On Friday, the UN nuclear agency urged both Russia and Ukraine to “exercise maximum restraint” as the fighting was edging closer to the Kursk nuclear power plant – one of the biggest such facilities in Russia.
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>International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi said measures must be taken “to avoid a nuclear accident with the potential for serious radiological consequences”.
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>The power plant is located about 60km north-east of Sudzha.

Further reading/listenings:

[Russia fighting intense battles against major Ukrainian incursion | Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-imposes-security-regime-three-border-regions-after-major-ukrainian-attack-2024-08-10/)

[Ukraine Goes into Kursk: A Dose of the “Russia Contingency” with Michael Kofman – War on the Rocks](https://warontherocks.com/2024/08/ukraine-goes-into-kursk-a-dose-of-the-russia-contingency-with-michael-kofman/)

[Ukraine’s surprise Kursk incursion: lifting spirits or stretching resources? – Euromaidan Press](https://euromaidanpress.com/2024/08/09/ukraines-surprise-kursk-incursion-lifting-spirits-or-stretching-resources/)

[Pokrovsk is now 16 km from front line, UK Defense Ministry says (kyivindependent.com)](https://kyivindependent.com/pokrovsk-16-km-from-front-uk-says/)

[Rob Lee on X: “Updated map showing further Russian advances west of New York and on the Pokrovsk front.](https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1822017112770277376)

[Ukrainian attack on Russia’s Kursk Oblast (initial thoughts) (substack.com)](https://rochanconsulting.substack.com/p/ukrainian-attack-on-russias-kursk)

[Russia Pushes Back at Ukraine’s Cross-Border Assault, but Kyiv Presses On – The New York Times (nytimes.com)](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/10/world/europe/ukraine-russia-cross-border-attack.html)

[As Ukraine Pushes Deeper Into Russia, Moscow Sends Reinforcements – The New York Times (nytimes.com)](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/09/world/europe/ukraine-russia-kursk-lipetsk.html)

!ping Ukraine