Sumy Oblast authorities says residents are being evacuated amid reports of Russians abducting civilians

Oleh Hryhorov, Head of Sumy Oblast Military Administration, has said that civilians are being evacuated from border settlements in Sumy Oblast following reports that Russian forces had abducted local residents from a border village.

Source: Hryhorov on Facebook

Quote: "Today, some of the residents who had previously refused evacuation were evacuated from the Krasnopillia hromada using armoured vehicles. They are currently staying at a transit centre, where they are receiving the necessary assistance." [A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories – ed.]

Details: Hryhorov said the evacuation is being carried out for all residents who have submitted requests. "These measures are being implemented in cooperation with volunteers and the appropriate services," he noted.

Hryhorov thanked everyone involved in supporting local residents. "The enemy is leaving residents of border settlements with no choice. The only right thing to do is to evacuate to save lives," he wrote.

Meanwhile, Hryhorov did not comment on information published by local media outlet Kordon.Media that Russian forces had entered the border village of Hrabovske in the Krasnopillia hromada in Sumy Oblast on the night of 19-20 December.

Background: Kordon.Media reported that there were civilians in Hrabovske who had previously signed evacuation waivers. The outlet said that just over 50 people had been taken to Russian territory for so-called "filtration procedures".

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