As Russian-backed separatist leaders hurriedly evacuated thousands of civilians from Ukraine’s occupied territories on Friday, the government in Kyiv warned evacuees they were being used in a potentially deadly ploy to justify a Russian military offensive—and that they might be blown up if they get on the evacuation buses. The buses “might be fired on by the occupying authorities,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Mikhail Podolyak told The Insider. Leaders in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics are “creating the conditions necessary for provocations. That is why we are calling on all peaceful citizens of Donetsk, Luhansk, and other cities in the occupied territories to not take part in this propaganda spectacle by the occupiers and to try and stay away from any of these so-called evacuations,” he said. His comments came as similar warnings from Ukrainian authorities were circulated on social media, telling citizens: “Don’t get on the buses!” The warnings urged residents to find their own way out if they wanted to evacuate, rather than take buses they said may come under shelling by separatist forces. Ominously, a Telegram channel run for and by separatists circulated a statement saying evacuees are indeed going to be targeted. “The Ukrainians are preparing a provocation. The SBU and the Armed Forces are developing a plan to shell a bus with evacuating women and children,” the separatists claimed.
