UKRAINE, KHARKIV OBLAST, Oct 18 — Since the beginning of the large-scale war, 25 volunteers and 14 police officers have been killed during evacuations in the Kharkiv region, reported Bohdan Yakhno, Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Relief Coordination Center and Olena Barannyk, spokesperson for the National Police of Ukraine.

The evacuation continues as towns and villages in the Kharkiv region often come under heavy Russian artillery shelling and airstrikes, especially after Russia launched a new ground offensive in May in the north and northeast of the region in the Vovchansk and Lyptsi directions.

Over the two years of the large-scale war in the Kharkiv region, 24 volunteers have been killed. Recently, Tyhran Halustian, a volunteer of “Troyanda na ruci” [“Rose on the hand” in translation from Ukrainian — ed.], was killed during an evacuation mission in the Donetsk region.

Bohdan Yakhno said that the situation in the Kharkiv region during evacuation is changing, and the Russian Federation’s weapons are also changing.

“Until now, there was no such number of drones that Russians could use to attack almost every car. Also, the distance of these drones is increasing, and it will most likely continue to increase,” said Bohdan Yakhno.

According to the National Police spokeswoman, since February 24, 2022, 14 police officers have been killed during patrols and evacuations, etc. She also noted that more than 500 police officers were injured while performing their professional duties.

“Staying in the frontline areas is a game with death. We cannot give our lives to the Russians,” emphasized Barannyk.

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  • Since August 9, 2022, 48,315 people have been evacuated from the deoccupied districts of the Kharkiv region. Among them are 5,512 children and 1,257 people with disabilities, announced Oleksandr Ilienko, Deputy Director of the Civil Protection Department of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, during a briefing.