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Serhiy Haidai, Luhansk Oblast's governor, said on April 19 that residents should leave immediately to avoid being taken captive by Russians and either be forced to work for them, or forcibly recruited to the Russian army, or be killed on the spot for refusing it. Haidai said thousands of residents of Kreminna, reportedly taken on April 18 after heavy fighting, had already been taken hostage by Russians. "There is no time to think," Haidai said.