The head of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation instructed to continue protecting residents of the Kursk region affected by the Ukrainian Armed Forces

Alexander Bastrykin, Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia, held an operational meeting in Kursk during which issues of organizing the work of the department's units in the conditions of hostilities in the Kursk direction were discussed. This was announced on March 21 by the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia.

Bastrykin was informed that investigators are continuing to work with 43,000 residents of the region affected by the crimes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).

"During the investigative actions, residents of the liberated settlements report that the Ukrainian troops forbade them to evacuate in order to use civilians as human shields. All these facts are recorded in the framework of criminal cases," the press service of the department informed.

Based on the evidence gathered by the investigation, the investigation of criminal cases against the mercenaries involved in the attack on the Kursk region continues. Among them are citizens of Great Britain, Georgia, Paraguay, Denmark, Peru, Colombia and other countries. Convictions have already been handed down against a number of defendants.

The Investigative Committee reported that Rostislav Karpusha, commander of the 19th Missile Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, was charged in absentia in one of these criminal cases. Also, according to the investigation, among the organizers of drone attacks on the Kursk region and other regions of Russia were: Kirill Budanov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Nikolai Oleshchuk, Commander of the Air Force, and Alexei Neizhpapa, Commander of the Naval Forces. They were charged in absentia and put on the wanted list.

Bastrykin instructed to continue work aimed at protecting the rights of residents of the Kursk region affected by criminal acts, as well as to identify new episodes of crimes committed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) and collect evidence on them.

To inflict punishment: Putin called for investigating the crimes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region

The allocation of assistance to affected citizens should also be under the control of prosecutors, the president said.

Earlier, on March 16, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case on a terrorist act in connection with the looting and murder of civilians in the Kursk region of the Ufa. It has been established that Ukrainian militants were engaged in looting and committed the murder of three civilians in the village of Kazachya Loknya, Sudzha district, no later than February of this year.