Around 10,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine since Russia launched a surprise ground attack more than a week ago, a local official said on Saturday.

The region's governor, Oleh Syniehubov, stated that "a total of 9,907 people have been evacuated" since the attack began on May 10. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that this could be a prelude to a broader operation in the region.

Kyiv asserts that it has currently managed to halt the Russian advance, which covered a distance of between five to ten kilometers from the border.

Syniehubov explained that Ukrainian forces repelled two Russian attempts to breach the contact lines on Friday night into Saturday, confirming that the situation is "under control... the defenders are conducting attacks and clearing operations in some areas."

He noted that "in the area of the city of Vovchansk (located five kilometers from the border), Ukrainian forces are strengthening their defenses."

On Friday, Syniehubov said that Russian forces had begun destroying the city, where only 200 residents remain after others fled due to the shelling.