Russian armed opposition forces capture village of Gorkovsky in Belgorod region
Russian armed opposition forces, along with volunteers from the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, have entered the settlement of Gorkovsky in the Russian Federation and captured the building of the local administration, the Siberian Battalion announced on their Telegram channel.
The photo published shows fighters standing with the administration's signpost against the backdrop of the Russian flag.
Russian war bloggers rushed to refute this information, insisting that Russia had vehemently thwarted all attempts to penetrate the village and falsely claiming that it remains under full control of the Russian Armed Forces.
In response, the Freedom of Russia Legion published a video confirming the presence of the opposition forces in Gorkovsky. The footage captures fighters tearing down flags of Putin's Russia from the administration buildings in the settlement.
In a sarcastic retort, the fighters commented, "Especially for Putin's propagandists, let's summarize briefly: on the orders and with the funding of Western curators, using their taxpayers' money, we constructed a village in Chernobyl that bears an uncanny resemblance to the Gorkovsky settlement in the Belgorod region."
Gorkovsky is located in the Graivoron district in the western part of the Belgorod region. As of March 1, 2024, the permanent population of the settlement was 413 people.
Wikipedia has already updated its information on the settlement, stating that since March 17, 2024, it has been under control of the Siberia battalion.
The Russian Ministry of Defence has not yet commented on the insurgents' statement.
The day before, members of the Russian Volunteer Corps, Freedom of Russia Legion, and Siberian Battalion publicly addressed Russian President Vladimir Putin. They described the presidential elections in Russia as a "complete farce," where the people are forced to polling stations "under bombs and artillery shells," and summoned the Kremlin leader "for talks."
The Russian Volunteer Corps also called upon the governor of Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, for discussions. They have reportedly taken 25 Russian servicemen captive and are prepared to release some of them.
Previously, Focus reported that the Russian Volunteer Corps warned Russians about new attacks and advised residents of settlements that have become combat zones to evacuate.