Russians seek answers over hundreds missing after Ukraine's 2024 incursion

What the report says

BBC World News reports that families in Russia’s Kursk region are still trying to learn what happened to relatives left behind after Ukraine’s cross-border incursion into the area in August 2024. Local officials say more than 300 people remain missing, although the article says the real number is uncertain. The reporting centers on residents such as Lyubov, who says she lost contact with her mother after the fighting began and later discovered her body only after months of searching.

The piece says Ukrainian forces briefly seized a large stretch of territory around Sudzha, while Russian authorities were criticized by families for not evacuating civilians earlier and for failing to provide a reliable missing-persons list. The article describes how communications were disrupted for months, how relatives formed informal search groups, and how volunteers helped recover bodies when official efforts appeared limited. It also notes that some families wrote to Russian and international authorities asking for a humanitarian corridor, but that no such evacuation arrangement was created.

According to the report, regional and federal Russian bodies offered little public response to requests for comment. The article also cites Ukraine’s territorial defence authorities, which said civilians evacuated from Kursk had been transferred back to Russia. Beyond this specific case, the story highlights the wider civilian toll of the fighting in border areas and the continuing uncertainty for families seeking answers long after the military operation ended.