Occupation authorities prepare evacuation plans in Zaporizhzhia Oblast

Russian occupation authorities are preparing evacuation plans in the occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine's National Resistance Center reported on May 1.

According to local sources, the occupation authorities are preparing for the evacuation of workers and their families.

Instructions on how to destroy documents and equipment are also being distributed, the National Resistance Center wrote.

In the same news piece, the National Resistance Center reiterated previously reported intel on how local occupation authorities in Crimea sent messages to districts to prepare shelters in case of "threats."

Russian occupation authorities are also "strengthening measures" to identify people involved in Ukrainian partisan movements, the center said.

This includes searching the homes of those suspected of "disloyalty," even when said people are not present, the National Resistance Center wrote.

In its May 1 update, the U.K. Defense Ministry wrote that Russia's extensive systems of military defensive works suggest "deep concern" over a major Ukrainian breakthrough.

Ukraine is expected to launch a major counteroffensive in the coming weeks. The long-awaited counteroffensive is seen as a critical juncture to take back Ukrainian territory under Russian control.

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on national television on April 19 that "complex measures" of Ukraine's planned counteroffensive are "already underway" in the east.

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Kyiv IndependentFrancis Farrell