MOSCOW, January 23. /TASS/. Ukrainian troops used civilians as a human shield when they were holding the village of Russkoye Porechnoye in Russia’s borderline Kursk Region, a Russian motorized riffle unit commander with the call sign Tatar said.
"When we stormed the village, we found civilians. They were dead. They (Ukrainian troops - TASS) hold them there not to let us advance because they use civilians as a human shield," he said in a video shared with TASS by the Russian defense ministry.
According to Tatar, Ukrainian troops retreated from Russkoye Porechnoye to Cherkasskoye Porechnoye. "They retreated because they are afraid. Because their commanders have abandoned them. Their command is deceiving them that is why they are sustaining such heavy losses," he added.
According to earlier reports, the bodies of seven civilians were found in the basements of two houses in Kursk Region’s Russkoye Porechnoye after it was liberated by Russian forces.