After the Ukraine offensive in Kursk: 330 people still missing

Relatives make accusations

At least 330 people still missing after Kursk offensive

They searched videos for signs of life and created their own lists of missing persons. Research shows why Russian families feel abandoned by the authorities after the Ukrainian advance in Kursk.

More than two years after the Ukrainian army’s surprise advance into the Russian border region Kursk The fate of at least 330 residents is still unclear. This figure was given by the region’s governor, Alexander Chinschtein, in July. The Russian Foreign Ministry said a month later that the actual number of missing people could be even higher.

Research by the BBC’s Russian service now shows how relatives searched for parents, partners and friends for months, largely on their own. They accuse the authorities of initially downplaying the danger, not evacuating residents in a timely manner and poorly organizing the subsequent search.

One of those affected is a woman who the BBC only calls Lyubov. She last spoke to her mother on August 7, 2024 – one day after Ukrainian soldiers crossed the border into the Kursk region. Lyubov wanted to persuade them to leave their village of Darino in the Sudja district. But her mother stayed.

Lyubov also blames Russian state television for this. The impression was given there that the situation was under control and would be over after a few days. According to estimates by Russian authorities, around 2,000 people remained in the towns that subsequently came under Ukrainian control.

The Ukraine With the attack on August 6, 2024, it occupied larger areas of internationally recognized Russian territory for the first time. Kyiv Among other things, the aim was to withdraw Russian troops from other sectors of the front. There was heavy fighting in the region for months, and mobile communications and the internet failed in many places. In the spring of 2025, Russian troops recaptured most of the area.

Relatives began making lists themselves during the fighting. They evaluated videos from Ukrainian soldiers and reports from journalists, collected names of survivors and noted where the dead had been seen or buried. According to the BBC, a privately maintained list at one time included around 1,000 names.

The official figures are contradictory: Russia’s human rights commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova published a list of 517 missing residents at the beginning of 2025. However, according to the BBC, relatives found names of people who had already been evacuated or killed. In some cases, people were even listed who were looking for family members themselves.