Ukraine, Russia both claim advances in Kursk region

At an Orthodox church in the centre of Sumy, the regional hub across the border from Kursk, dozens of mourners gathered Thursday to pay their final respects to six Ukrainian servicemen killed since Kyiv launched its offensive.
Tearful family members of the victims received a steady stream of friends and relatives wearing black and clutching wreaths as the priest intoned a funeral mass and incense hung in the air.
“It is hard to say goodbye to them, because we want them to live forever, to live among us as honoured sons of their homeland,” the priest told mourners.
“Our task is to pray for our heroic fighters and their families.”
Pallbearers lifted the coffins one by one for burial as a choir sang hymns in harmony. Air raid sirens echoed over Sumy as the service ended.
In Kursk, AFP reporters saw around 500 evacuees from border areas queueing for food and clothes being distributed by the Russian Red Cross.Russia says over 120,000 people have left or been evacuated.
The assault took Russian troops by surprise and triggered the evacuation of tens of thousands.
The fighting killed at least 12 civilians and wounded 121 others according to Russian authorities, who have not released a toll since Monday.
Moscow scrambled reinforcement and announced the recapture of a first village in the Kursk region on Thursday.
The ministry said the army had “completed destruction of the enemy and restored control of the settlement of Krupets”.
Kyiv officials have argued the offensive was a needed act of “self-defence” and experts suggest it could be aimed at alleviating pressure from the eastern front.
Ukrainian troops are however still struggling in the eastern Donbas region, a key prize for Moscow.
“Most Russian attacks are taking place” in the eastern Donbas,” Zelenskyy said, adding: “We are paying maximum defensive attention.”
Russia said Thursday its forces had captured Ivanivka, a frontline village just 15 km from the Kyiv-held transport hub of Pokrovsk in east Ukraine.