Hundreds flee Kharkiv area after Russian cross-border attack

Russian attacks in northeastern Ukraine have led to the evacuation of almost 1,800 people from the Kharkiv region, the regional head said.

After Russia’s surprise invasion on Friday, heavy fighting continued in the border area.

Kiev has been anticipating a Russian summer offensive for some time – including a possible attempt to take Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city.

However, Ukraine insists its armed forces can withstand any attack.

On Saturday, Russia announced that it had captured five villages near the city of Vovchansk in its latest offensive. The BBC could not independently verify the claim.

It is still not clear how far the Russians will advance – whether this will be a probing attack or the start of something larger.

Ukrainian artillery pieces are now firing back. The sound of the firefight echoes loudly through the already bomb-damaged streets.

A total of 1,775 people were evacuated, Kharkiv regional director Oleh Syniehubov said on social media. Hundreds more remain in Vovchansk, just 6 km (3.7 miles) from the Russian border.

Serhii, a resident, told the BBC that his home and vehicles were destroyed by a Russian glide bomb.

His wife was taken to hospital with more serious injuries. Small fires were still spreading smoke over what remained of his home.

Serhii said he didn’t want to leave because he was afraid of what might happen to their four goats.

As we surveyed the damage, we heard the screech of more glide bombs being fired, followed by the violent boom of the explosion.

The impact of the Russian air force is becoming increasingly lethal, and Ukraine has no answer for now.

Ukrainian officials say Russia could have worsened the situation in the border areas but could not have taken the city of Kharkiv itself.

Moscow is reportedly hoping to create a 10km buffer zone for the Belgorod region following a series of cross-border Ukrainian attacks.

In his late-night address on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said fighting continued in seven border villages, Reuters reported.

“Our defensive operations in the Kharkiv region continue,” he said, adding that the situation in Donetsk “remains particularly tense.”

On Friday, the US announced a new $400 million (£319 million; 371 million euros) military aid package for Ukraine.

It will be Washington’s third aid payment to the country after months of political deadlock – an addition to the previous package worth a total of $7 billion sent in late April.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the “urgently needed” aid would include air defense ammunition, artillery shells, anti-tank weapons and armored vehicles.

On Friday, national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters that Russia would “make further progress in the coming weeks to try to establish a buffer zone along the Ukrainian border.”

Moscow is trying to capitalize on the late arrival of American weapons by advancing further in the eastern Donetsk region.

The return of heavy fighting in the northeast highlights Russia’s growing ambitions.