MOSCOW: Russia announced on Tuesday that its armed forces had successfully repelled and subsequently eliminated a group of militants and military equipment that had infiltrated its southern Belgorod region from Ukraine.
This incursion is considered the most significant attack on Russian soil since the start of Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine, leading Russian authorities to declare an “anti-terror regime” and evacuate nine border villages.
Russia’s Counter-terrorist Operation
According to the Russian defense ministry, the nationalist formations involved in the attack were blocked and destroyed through airstrikes and artillery fire conducted during a counter-terrorist operation.
The remaining fighters were reportedly driven back into Ukrainian territory, where they continued to be targeted until completely eliminated. The ministry’s statement claimed that over 70 Ukrainian fighters were killed, and four armored vehicles were destroyed by Russian forces.
The defense ministry placed the blame for the incursion on Ukrainian authorities, alleging that the Kyiv regime, having suffered a defeat in Artemovsk, had resorted to carrying out terror attacks against the civilian population.
The statement referred to the city of Bakhmut by its Soviet-era name, which Russian forces claimed to have seized over the weekend.
While Ukraine has denied any involvement in the attack, members of the anti-Kremlin Freedom of Russia Legion have claimed responsibility for the incursion.
