Occupiers forcing residents of Kharkiv region to leave for Russia – regional administration

The press service of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration reported this on Telegram, referring to Oleh Syniehubov, head of the administration, according to Ukrinform.

"The head of the regional military administration said that the occupiers are forcing residents of the Kharkiv region to leave for the Russian Federation, taking away their means of communication and documents. In this way, the enemy prevents people from leaving for safe areas. According to him, in Izium, the enemy tried to mobilize the local population, forcing them to join the armed forces of the Russian Federation," the statement reads.

Syniehubov stressed that the authorities are aware of the situation in each temporarily occupied settlement. "And as soon as we have an opportunity to help, we do it," he said.

He said earlier that the occupiers set up a prison in Vovchansk on the territory of an enterprise whose equipment had been exported to Russia.

"They use force against local residents, making them cooperate with the occupation regime. These actions continue to demonstrate that the enemy continues to commit war crimes against the civilian population. When we liberate settlements, we see both civilian casualties and the bodies of the Russian military, which they do not take away. We record all this so that no war crime is ignored by justice," Syniehubov said.

As reported, according to the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, Liudmyla Denisova, Russia forcibly deported more than 900,000 Ukrainians to Russia.