The Ukrainian government has ordered the mandatory evacuation of several towns and settlements in the Kharkov region (east), given the proximity of Russian bombing in some areas that were already controlled by the Russian Army at the start of the invasion.
Andriy Kanashevich, acting head of the military administration of the Kupyansk district, one of the Kharkiv towns, confirmed this order in statements collected by the National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (Suspilne).
In the Kupiansk district, the mandatory evacuation of ten settlements of the Vilkhuvat community, as well as all the nearby communities of Dvorichan and Petropavlovsk, was announced, the military official specified.
Although the military chief does not give details about the situation in the area, the measures adopted indicate the progress and insistence of Russian bombing in an area that Moscow came to control at the beginning of the invasion and from which its forces were subsequently evicted.
Kanashevich added that the "mandatory evacuation of people with reduced mobility in those communities" and municipalities, close to the eastern front, the current epicenter of the fighting between the Russian and Ukrainian forces, will be facilitated.
"A decision was made regarding the mandatory evacuation of the population of ten settlements of the Vilkhuvat community, which are close to the border and are under fire, from all the communities of Dvorichansk and Petropavlovsk," the military official reiterated.
He further clarified that his administration wants to "get everyone out," but "the vast majority of people don't want to leave even in the face of bombing."
According to him, the volunteers and the regional authorities are helping with the evacuation: "Buses are provided. The cars are provided by the volunteers themselves. The Red Cross also helps with their vehicles and takes people away," he added.
And "if parents refuse to evacuate their children during the mandatory evacuation of minors, the children will be removed" from the area, he threatened.
"We will remove the children. At this time - he said - we are considering the mechanism by which it is possible to remove the children and if it is possible within the limits of the law."
"If there are parents who endanger not only themselves, but also their children, we will make unpopular decisions," said Kanashevich, noting that it is still calculating how many children and people with reduced mobility will be evacuated.
In this regard, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk has proposed to approve a mechanism to introduce the forced evacuation of children with their parents from the zones of active hostilities.
The initiative, she said, was discussed at a meeting of the Coordination Staff on Unoccupied Territories chaired by her, according to a note from the ministry's press service released by Suspilne.
Following this debate, his department will draw up a draft resolution on the protection of children found in "zones of hostilities and armed conflicts."
The document provides for the granting of permission to the authorities, in agreement with the military command bodies and the Mandatory Evacuation Coordinating Headquarters, to make a decision on the forced eviction of children with their parents or people who replace them.
At the same time, parental refusal of mandatory evacuation will not be allowed. "If parents cannot take care of the safety of children, the state will," Vereshchuk stressed.
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