Russia offers to move residents of Belgorod region bordering Ukraine after shelling

Russia’s Belgorod region bordering Ukraine offered to move some residents from its capital to safety on Friday, after Kyiv’s forces pounded the city with intense bouts of shelling.

The offer came a day after overnight shelling wounded at least two people and knocked out glass from high-rise buildings, prompting panic among residents.

“I see several appeals on social media where people write: We are scared, help us get to a safe place,” Belgorod region governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a video message.

“Of course we will. We have already moved several families,” he added.

He said residents would be transported to the towns of Stary Oskol and Gubkin, further from the border, where they would be housed in “comfortable conditions.”

“You will stay there for as long as necessary,” he added, but warned there would not be enough temporary accommodation to house everybody.

“I will appeal to my colleagues, the governors of other regions, to help us,” he said.

Belgorod city hall had earlier warned homeowners to secure their windows with tape to protect from blast waves.

The Kremlin has tried to maintain a semblance of normalcy on the home front, but recent deadly strikes on Belgorod have brought the reality of the conflict closer to Russians.

Belgorod city lies 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Ukraine and has been repeatedly struck by what Moscow says is indiscriminate shelling by Kyiv’s forces.

On Saturday, authorities said an unprecedented Ukrainian strike in the city killed 25 people – the worst attack on Russian civilians since the conflict began.

On Thursday, schools close to the Ukrainian border in the region were ordered to extend their winter holidays due to the threat of attacks.