Russian families seek answers over 300 missing in Kursk after 2024 incursion

September 13, 2026 at 04:51 AM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

More than 300 Russians remain missing in Kursk region more than two years after Ukraine's August 2024 incursion, according to the local governor. Families say the Russian state did little to help locate their relatives and blame state TV propaganda for convincing people to stay. Nearly 200 residents sent a letter to President Putin, President Zelensky and the UN asking for a humanitarian corridor, but it never happened.

Key Facts

Kursk region governor says more than 300 Russians are still missing after Ukraine's August 2024 incursion.
Russian authorities estimate around 2,000 people remained in settlements captured by Ukraine's military.
Early in 2025, Russia's human rights commissioner published a list of 517 Kursk residents reported missing.
Nearly 200 Russians sent a letter to President Putin, President Zelensky and the UN asking for a humanitarian corridor.
Authorities said 90% of the village of Darino was destroyed in late 2024 fighting.

Missing and Unaccounted

The local governor says more than 300 Russians are still missing in Kursk region, but no-one really knows the true figure. Russian authorities estimate some 2,000 people remained in the settlements captured by Ukraine's military. Early in 2025, Russia's human rights commissioner published a list of 517 Kursk residents reported missing. The list mixed up names of the missing with those who were searching for them, and families called it a 'slap in the face'.

Family Efforts and State Response

Lyubov, whose mother stayed in the Sudzha area, blames Russian state TV propaganda for her mother's refusal to leave. She wrote to the Red Cross and Kursk interior ministry appealing for help, but had no response. One resident began compiling a list of people seen on videos published by the Ukrainian military and journalists, which soon reached about 1,000 names. Nearly 200 Russians sent a letter to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and the United Nations asking for a humanitarian corridor to evacuate civilians.

The Incursion and Its Aftermath

Ukrainian soldiers stormed two border checkpoints in August 2024, taking around 40 prisoners and bombing a convoy carrying Russian soldiers. For most of the next eight months, mobile and internet links were down. Heavy fighting was reported in late 2024 in the village of Darino, where Lyubov and her mother were from, and authorities said 90% of it had been destroyed.