Vovchansk Update: 'Active Battles' on Outskirts of City, Kharkiv Chief Says

There are "active shooting battles" happening on the northern edge of the Ukrainian border city of Vovchansk, according to a Ukrainian official, as thousands of people flee from Russian advances in northeastern Ukraine.

"Active shooting battles are taking place on the northern outskirts of the city" of Vovchansk, Kharkiv regional governor, Oleh Syniehubov, said in a statement on Tuesday.

Russian troops launched a fresh offensive on Ukraine on Friday, opening up a new front in the northeast after concentrating attacks on Ukrainian positions in the eastern Donetsk region for months. Vovchansk sits around three miles, or five kilometers, from the Russian border onto the Kharkiv region.

More than 7,500 people have been evacuated, according to Ukrainian officials, and Moscow has said it has captured a series of border villages. Russia's Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that its troops had taken control of Buhruvatka, a village west of Vovchansk, and "advanced into the depths of the enemy's defense."

Russia said on Monday that its forces had entered Vovchansk. Geolocated footage from Monday indicates Russian forces advanced into northern Vovchansk, the U.S.-based think tank, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said in its latest assessment.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated shortly.

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