Russian security forces and the military have thwarted an attempt by a Ukrainian saboteur and reconnaissance group to infiltrate Bryansk Region, the Federal Security Service (FSB) has announced. Local governor Aleksandr Bogomaz added that the botched raid took place in the early hours of Wednesday.
In a statement, the agency said that the attempted incursion took place in the Starodubsky region bordering Ukraine and was thwarted by FSB operatives and Russian Defense Ministry forces aiding the agency. “Four saboteurs have been taken out,” it wrote.
The security service also noted that it had seized not only foreign-made weapons, explosives, and communications and navigation equipment, but also Russian-flagged reconnaissance drones labeled “Property of FSB.” “This is evidence [they] were preparing false-flag attacks and saboteur operations in Russian territory,” the agency stated.
The FSB also released a clip showing dead bodies and the equipment in question, including two Western-designed assault rifles, and several compact UAVs.
On Tuesday, Bogomaz said that Ukrainian saboteurs had attempted to infiltrate Russian territory near the settlement of Kurkovichi in Bryansk Region, but were stopped by security forces. At the time, he said that the Ukrainian intruders’ actions resulted in an injury to one agricultural worker, who was taken to a hospital.
Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been repeatedly targeted by artillery and drone attacks in recent months, with Kiev’s forces sporadically trying to stage incursions. In late May, Moscow accused Kiev of a cross-border raid into Belgorod Region that resulted in one civilian killed and several others injured. At the time, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have eliminated more than 70 fighters and several armored vehicles, while showing pictures of disabled US-made heavy equipment.