According to Russian Telegram channels, panic reigns in the border areas of Russia's Kursk region, where fighting has been going on all week.
‼️Russian media have introduced a new term: "voluntary evacuation".
◾️ there are no police, firefighters, medics or representatives of the Russian administration;
◾️Russian settlements, according to official information, have been abandoned by more than 76,000 people;
◾️ most people left on their own, as there was no organized evacuation, contrary to the Russian authorities' statements;
◾️ depopulation of villages became a catalyst for rampant Russian looting among the remaining population.
"Stores are being looted, there is a collapse in Korenevo, Magnit has just been robbed. No water, no gas, no light. There was no organized evacuation, and if there was any, why haven't we in Lobanovka [Korenevsky district] heard anything about it?" - a local resident wrote.
The situation is similar in other Russian border municipalities. Residents say that representatives of the administration have provoked a collapse in the border areas themselves by leaving people to their fate.
At present, the administration of Korenevsky district of Russian Kursk region cannot be reached. People are forced to self-organize in order to protect themselves and their property and perform the functions of state and law enforcement authorities.
◾️ Residents of Kursk region who were affected will be paid 10,000 rubles each, that's about $100. Apparently, Russia has money only for contract soldiers and for war.
Russia is gradually returning into the 1990s.
In the video, a Russian journalist shares about cases of looting in Lgov, Kursk region of Russia.
That's seriously damaging for the Russian Federation's ability to ever claim to these people that the Russian Federation does anything but exploit them. If and when Ukraine exits the area, Russia will need to reconquer this territory if it is ever to be held again. And these citizens are getting a taste now for self organization. They're seeing that the Russian Federation didn't keep them safe, and that to meet their basic needs they had to do it themselves. I don't know what happens for this region next, but Russia may have just permanently lost control.
I'm sure the Ukrainian soldiers are rather busy with important things of their own, but if they've got any spare bandwidth it'd be neat if they were able to help organize the Russian civilians a bit and keep this kind of lawlessness suppressed. Heck, if they're digging in for the long term they may end up needing to provide humanitarian aid for the people who chose to stay behind. That'll be quite the look.