Russian sources report that Ukrainian forces "have captured 45 square kilometers in the Kursk region", an area roughly equivalent to Lidingö municipality, writes ISW (Institute for the Study of War). Over ten communities have been captured, and the forces are now advancing along a highway northwest from the city of Sudzha, it is stated.
Fighting is also ongoing in the air. Russia has shot down seven Ukrainian drones in Kursk, according to the region's governor Aleksey Smirnov.
Ukraine has also issued air raid warnings in several rounds during the night, including drone warnings in northeastern Ukraine and robot warnings in southern Ukraine.
Russia's leader Vladimir Putin calls Ukraine's ground offensive a "large-scale provocation".
In a post on X, President Zelensky's adviser Mykhailo Podolyak writes that the attacks on Russian territory are a response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"The reason for all escalation, shelling, military actions, forced evacuations, and destruction, even within Russia's own territories such as the Kursk and Belgorod regions, is solely Russia's aggression," writes Podolyak.
Russia also confirmed on Thursday that continued fighting in the Kursk region is ongoing.
The Russian army's chief of staff Valeriy Gerasimov confirmed that around 100 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in the fighting, reports Russian news agencies.
