LONDON (Reuters) – Video posted on social media on Friday and verified by Reuters showed a convoy of burnt-out Russian military trucks along a highway in the Kursk region of southern Russia, where Ukrainian forces have staged a major incursion this week.
About 15 trucks could be seen in the video, including one with the Z marking that Russia uses as a symbol of its “special military operation” in Ukraine. Some of the trucks appeared to contain dead bodies.
Reuters was able to verify the location as the village of Oktyabrskoye, based on buildings, trees and road layouts, but was not able to establish exactly when the video was shot.
Ukrainian forces broke across the border on Tuesday in a shock counter-offensive, after months of gradual Russian advances in eastern Ukraine, almost two-and-a-half years after Moscow sent troops into its neighbour.
Military Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov reported to President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that Russian troops and forces of the FSB security service had halted the advance and would push the Ukrainians back to the border.
But official statements, accounts from military bloggers and videos posted on social media indicated Russia was still struggling to achieve that goal, nearly 48 hours later.
The defence ministry said in a statement that its forces “continue to repel an attempted invasion by the Armed Forces of Ukraine into the territory of the Russian Federation”.
Russian authorities declared a federal state of emergency in Kursk region.
(Reporting by Reuters; writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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