Record Evacuation of Russians, Largest Since 2nd Chechen War

Russian authorities have announced the largest evacuation of Russian citizens from a war zone since the Second Chechen War.

Nearly 194,000 people are set to be evacuated from areas in the Kursk and Belgorod regions due to the ongoing Ukrainian military offensive, according to statements from regional governors.

In the Kursk region, acting governor Alexey Smirnov said that 180,000 residents from eight districts, including those near the Kursk nuclear power plant, will be relocated. So far, 121,000 people have already fled their homes.

In the Belgorod region, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported the “displacement” of residents from the Krasnoyaruzhsky district, citing “enemy activity” near the border. This district is adjacent to the Belovsky district in the Kursk region and is home to 13,800 people.

According to Agentstvo media, the last time Russians fled in such large numbers was during the Second Chechen War. In the autumn of 1999, around 300,000 people fled Chechnya for Ingushetia.

Unlike the current organized evacuation, the Chechen War saw residents fleeing independently.

However, such a massive organized evacuation hasn’t been conducted in Russia since World War II and is comparable in scale to the evacuation from Leningrad in 1941, where 488,700 people were relocated.