Vovchansk Has Already Been Under Occupation. Now, Russia Wants to Capture It Again

Driving from Kharkiv to the small border town of Vovchansk, once home to over 17,000 people, we notice that all the cars heading in the opposite direction are packed with belongings. Only after the fifth such car does the realization hit us: people are fleeing en masse.

Russia launched a new offensive in the Kharkiv region on the morning of May 10th. While there was no significant breakthrough, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi stressed the severity of the situation, prompting the deployment of reserves to defend the Kharkiv region’s borders.

Civilians began evacuating almost immediately. In the first 24 hours, more than 2,000 people left Vovchansk, followed by the same number the next day.

When we enter the town, we are met with emptiness. No people, no cars. A woman searching for water explains that everyone has left, and those who couldn’t, like herself, are hiding in basements. The reason? Constant Russian shelling: a barrage of glide bombs, artillery, and mines raining down on the town. Destroyed houses, ruins, and fires everywhere. The town is submerged in smoke, as are the access roads, targeted by Russian shelling.

We spot a woman carrying two big bags. She has gathered her most essential belongings and is fleeing the town. “I want to escape this horror as soon as possible,” she says quickly. A police crew, assisting with evacuations, notices her. “Drones!” one officer shouts, quickly returning to the car and speeding off the road towards an evacuation point far from the town.

Indeed, the sky is filled with drones. It’s impossible to tell whether they are Ukrainian or Russian, adding another layer of terror to the scene. Smoke, fires, constant shelling, and the constant buzz of drones fill the air. It’s no surprise the town has turned into a wasteland in a matter of days.

Russia occupied Vovchansk on the first day of the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. Ukrainian Armed Forces liberated the town in September 2022 as part of a broader liberation of the Kharkiv region. Now, two years later, the Russian army has returned in its attempts to seize the Kharkiv region. However, Ukraine is prepared: over the past two months, the Armed Forces have reported Russia amassing a new offensive force and anticipating operations in May-June, a period when Ukraine would acutely feel the lack of ammunition and equipment from foreign partners.

This material was made with the help of the International Insurance Fund for Journalists (IIFJ). In partnership with European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), Federal Foreign Office Germany, Voices of Ukraine as part of Hannah-Arendt-Initiative.