The decision to expand the forced evacuation zone in Kharkiv Oblast has not yet been approved. Presently, 243 children live in the Kupiansk community, which may potentially be evacuated.

Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, said that the evacuation of families with children from three communities of the Kupiansk district has recently been completed.

Map of the Kupyansk district / Map: Institute for the Study of War and AEI’s Critical Threats Project

“We will bring this issue to the Regional Defense Council. Perhaps it will be recommended to leave, and not a forced evacuation. We must protect people from enemy attacks and evacuate as a preventive measure. The situation is difficult but stable,” said Oleg Sinegubov.

Read also: Constant missile attacks and empty streets: how Kupiansk lives on the front line.

During November 3-26, 296 children were evacuated from the dangerous territory. Two more children are on the list in the Kurylivska community: born in 2012 and 2018. However, there are no children at their addresses. 

Gwara tried to find out more information on the evacuation from the local authorities for several days without receiving a response.

Kupiansk, a town with a pre-war population of about 30,000 people, was occupied from late February till September 2022. The city is a railway and road hub in eastern Ukraine between Kharkiv and Luhansk regions.

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