'Hard times' in Russian border region facing Kyiv attacks
Russia's Belgorod region bordering Ukraine is going through "hard times" due to recent fatal shelling by Kyiv, its governor said Thursday.
Hundreds of residents including children have already left the region's capital city following attacks that have left over two dozen dead.
"The Belgorod region is going through hard times," governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said, presenting at an expo in Moscow.
Schools near the border have switched to remote learning due to the threat of further attacks and homes have been destroyed, he added.
"What Belgorodians have endured and are enduring, not everyone can physically cope with it," he said.
"Everyone is afraid, but it is one thing when you sit and are afraid alone, and another thing when we cope with this misfortune together".
Children could be seen gathering at Belgorod train station Wednesday as they prepared to leave for safer regions.
The evacuations represent a frustration for the Kremlin, which has tried to maintain normality ahead of presidential elections this year.
It has vowed that Russia's military would do "everything" it can to stop the attacks, and has responded with deadly strikes on Ukrainian territory.
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