Trehubov on abduction of 50 people by occupiers in Sumy region: This is local provocation, not large-scale breakthrough
On December 20, approximately fifty local residents were forcibly taken from the border village of Hrabovske in the Sumy region, located several hundred meters from the Russian border, to the territory of the Russian Federation. There were no children among them.
This was announced on the air of "Suspilne. Studio" by Viktor Trehubov, head of the communications department of the Joint Forces, according to Censor.NET.
What is known?
According to him, in the evening and at night, units of the Russian 36th Brigade entered the area of the border village and attempted to penetrate one kilometer into Ukraine. Russian troops evacuated up to 50 civilians from Hrabovske. They were mostly men.
Tregubov noted that these were people who had previously refused to evacuate. The village was evacuated in its entirety; it is located directly on the border with Russia, and Russian troops had to advance less than two kilometers.
War crime
On the night of the Russian military's arrival in the area, fighting continued, and according to Tregubov, measures to drive out the Russian army are currently underway. At the same time, he stressed that from the point of view of humanitarian law, the situation constitutes a war crime and is in fact the abduction of civilians.
This case once again demonstrates the need for evacuation from the immediate combat zone and border areas," he added.
Provocation by the Russian Federation
According to Tregubov, the actions of the Russian military do not appear to be an attempt at a large-scale breakthrough or a major military operation. In his assessment, this is a local provocation in an area that was not previously a key one, and a significant part of it was the abduction of civilians. Tregubov added that these actions have no strategic goals and may be aimed at a political or informational attack.
What preceded it?
Earlier, media reported that Russians had entered a border village in the Sumy region and taken away fifty people. Later, the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed this information.
