Over 4,000 people evacuated in Ukraine's Kharkiv region

Stanislav and his wife Valentyna, evacuees from the town of Vovchansk, arrive at an evacuation point in Kharkiv, on May 11, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. [AFP]

More than 4,000 people have been evacuated from border areas in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, the local governor said on Sunday, following a surprise cross-border Russian offensive there that began on Friday.

"In total, 4,073 people have been evacuated," governor Oleg Synegubov wrote on social media, a day after Russian forces claimed the capture of five villages in the region.