‘We Don’t Care Where We Freeze’ – Refugees in Kursk Demand War Recognition in the Region

In the Russian city of Kursk, refugees from Sudzha, now under Ukrainian control, gathered for a spontaneous protest, calling on the Kremlin to recognize the fighting in their region as a war, according to 7x7 Horizontal Russia.

The Russian social network, Vkontakte, had blocked a post about the protest.

In a video published by the news outlet, dozens of people can be seen gathered in Red Square in Kursk on Sunday, Nov 10.

“We don’t care where we freeze. Freezing on the street – what’s the difference, we’re not home anyway,” one of the refugees tells a correspondent.

The Sudzha refugees are protesting the inadequate conditions of their temporary accommodations and the lack of rental vouchers to secure proper housing. They also expressed frustration that their appeals are being ignored.

During the protest, Anatoly Drogan, head of the department for interaction with local authorities, approached the protesters.

He called the rally “illegal” and demanded the protesters disperse and go to the public reception to submit a collective appeal, but the refugees refused.

“They are pushing you to illegal actions. We live with you in a counterterrorism operation mode, and unfortunately, this is not up to the authorities,” said Drogan, adding, “The authorities did not provoke enemies on the border – this is war. It is not under the control of the authorities. There was a breakthrough, the troops stationed there were killed. Believe me, those responsible have already been detained.”

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The protesters demanded that the conflict in their region be recognized as a war and asked why Drogan, and not the head of the Sudzha district, Bogachov, who had said nothing to the people after the Ukrainian forces’ advanced into Sudzha, had come to speak with them.

“Do you want to talk to us or shout? If you want to shout, this will end right now,” Drogan responded.

Later, another official came out and promised to arrange a meeting with the governor on Tuesday. However, one of the protest participants told the “7×7” outlet that the governor was unwilling to meet with the people, so the head of the district would attend instead.

On Aug. 6, the Armed Forces of Ukraine launched an offensive on the Kursk region of Russia, which was part of a large-scale military operation in the east. The operation involved intense combat, resulting in damage to strategic facilities and significant losses among Russian forces.