ROSTOV-ON-DON, May 2. /TASS/. More than 7,500 citizens of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics crossed the Russian border in the Rostov Region in the past 24 hours, the press service of the regional branch of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said in a statement on Monday.

"Over 7,500 people crossed the border to enter Russia through checkpoints in the Rostov Region in the past 24 hours," the statement reads.

Tensions escalated along the line of contact in Donbass on February 17. On February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced recognizing the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. Putin said in a televised address on February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine.