Kiev [Ukraine], August 15: Ukrainian troops are making progress in recapturing territory near the Russian-controlled city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, officials said.
Last week, a total of 3 square kilometres was liberated, Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday.
In total, Ukrainian troops around Bakhmut have recaptured 40sqkm since the start of their counteroffensive more than 10 weeks ago, she said.
Bakhmut, seen as a prize by Moscow, was the site of months of brutal fighting. The small city in the Donetsk region was taken by the Wagner mercenary group and regular Russian soldiers in May. Most of Bakhmut's pre-war population of about 70,000 are gone and the city lies in ruins.
Kiev's forces have struggled to break through the entrenched layers of Russian defences on the eastern and southern fronts, but frequently report making small gains.
Maliar went on to say that Ukrainian units have established themselves in the village of Urozhaine, in the southern part of the Donetsk region. She also spoke of fierce fighting south of the neighbouring village of Staromaiorske, which was liberated just over a fortnight ago.
In addition, there was "very intense fighting" in the Kharkiv and Luhansk regions, Maliar reported. Maliar also confirmed that Ukrainian units had made advances during limited raids on the Russian-occupied bank of the Dnipro River in the southern Kherson region. But she stressed that they had not yet established themselves there, which would mark a significant gain for Kiev.
"In order to establish a foothold, you have to displace the enemy, clear the territory," Maliar said.
Meanwhile, Russian attacks on Ukraine piled up on Monday as Moscow's forces hit both Odessa in the south and Zaporizhzhya further east.
Rescue workers found two people dead in the rubble of two apartment buildings in Zaporizhzhya, authorities said. Three people were rescued.
In Odessa, three employees of a large supermarket were injured in a Russian airstrike targeting the Ukrainian port city early on Monday, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Falling missile fragments damaged the supermarket and a dormitory and fires had broken out, Odessa Governor OlehKiper said in a statement. The Russian army reportedly deployed 15 drones and fired eight Kalibr cruise missiles at the port city from the Black Sea. They were all intercepted, according to Kiper.
Source: Qatar Tribune
