Police: Death toll of Russian attack on Kupiansk rises to 6

As of around 5 p.m. local time, six people have been confirmed killed in Russia’s Sept. 19 air strike on Kharkiv Oblast’s Kupiansk, according to Serhii Bolvinov, head of the regional police's investigative department.

Earlier the same day, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported that Russian forces had launched a guided aerial bomb at Kupiansk, killing three civilians.

The attack hit the vehicle of volunteers evacuating civilians from the city, Bolvinov said on Facebook. The updated number of victims includes two women and four men.

“We continue to retrieve the bodies from the nearby river and destroyed cars,” the official added.

Kupiansk has recently come under intensified attacks as Russia continues its offensive operation to retake the territories in Kharkiv Oblast liberated by Ukraine’s surprise counteroffensive last autumn. Kupiansk was occupied by Russian forces from Feb. 27 to Sept. 10, 2022.

Last month, Ukrainian authorities ordered the mandatory evacuation of 37 settlements in the Kupiansk district.

A total of 1,433 people, including 343 children, have been evacuated from front-line areas in Kharkiv Oblast's Kupiansk district since Aug. 9, Syniehubov said on Aug. 28.

Escape from Kupiansk: How one cop tricked the Russians

Editor’s note: Due to security concerns, the Kyiv Independent isn’t publishing the real name or the photo of the police officer at the center of this story. He is identified in the story as Oleksandr. KUPIANSK, Kharkiv Oblast – Kupiansk police officer Oleksandr doesn’t like remembering the time

The Kyiv IndependentIgor Kossov