Pro-Kremlin media outlets are spreading yet another piece of disinformation, claiming that Ukraine’s Defense Forces are allegedly preventing civilians in the city of Kostiantynivka, Donetsk region, from leaving and are “threatening them with physical violence”. These claims are false and are intended to discredit the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

This was reported by StopFake.

Russian forces have significantly intensified combat operations in the Kostiantynivka sector. Due to continuous shelling, the city remains without electricity, and repair crews are unable to restore power networks because of ongoing attacks. Since June 2025, public transport in Kostiantynivka has been suspended, and on 22 August 2025 the city completely lost its gas supply after a gas distribution station was damaged.

According to local authorities, approximately 80% of the city’s infrastructure has been destroyed. The delivery of food, medicines, and humanitarian aid is severely disrupted, as Russian forces regularly target volunteers and members of the Defense Forces with FPV drones. According to the National Police of Ukraine, the occupiers carry out around 20 airstrikes on the city every day.

Despite the critical situation, evacuation from Kostiantynivka continues. Voluntary evacuation began immediately after the start of the full-scale invasion, while mandatory evacuation has been in effect since July 2022. As of November 2025, around 4,500 residents remain in the city, compared to nearly 77,000 before the war.

The evacuation process is carried out through cooperation between Ukrainian military personnel, volunteers, human rights defenders, and international organizations, and is conducted openly and transparently. Ukraine remains fully accessible to journalists and human rights organizations, enabling them to document Russia’s war crimes in real time. For example, The New York Times has described Kostiantynivka as one of the key areas of the Russian offensive, where drones track virtually every military movement and the evacuation of civilians has become an extremely complex operation.