Russia Claims Control Over Villages in Eastern Ukraine
On Sunday, Russia announced the capture of two villages in eastern Ukraine amidst ongoing military operations. The Russian defense ministry revealed that its southern military group seized the village of Yantarne, located approximately 10 kilometers southwest of Kurakhove, a vital logistics center that Moscow claimed to have taken just a week prior.
In a further expansion of their territorial gains, Russia’s military indicated on Saturday that it had also acquired new land northwest of Kurakhove. Additionally, they confirmed the capture of Kalinove village in the northeastern Kharkiv region, which lies on the western bank of the Oskil River, a significant frontline separating the opposing forces.
Strategic Advances and Ukrainian Response
Ukrainian officials have pointed out that Russian troops established a bridgehead on the western side of the Oskil River after successfully crossing it. This river has been a focal point in the conflict, with Russian forces striving for months to gain control over this strategic area, which also flows through Kupiansk, a city that Ukraine reclaimed during its counteroffensive in 2022.
In response to the escalating conflict, the Ukrainian air force reported a successful operation where they shot down 60 Russian drones overnight from Saturday to Sunday. Although debris from these drones caused damage to homes in Kharkiv, Sumy, and Poltava regions, thankfully, no injuries were reported.
Civilian Impact and Ongoing Drone Attacks
In the southern Kherson region, local authorities confirmed that three individuals sustained injuries from drone strikes on Sunday. The situation worsened in the Russian-controlled segment of Kherson, where a Ukrainian drone strike targeted a vehicle, tragically resulting in the death of a 76-year-old woman outside her residence, as reported by the Russian-appointed governor, Vladimir Saldo.
Moreover, in the Russian city of Engels on the Volga River, a fire ignited by a Ukrainian drone strike at an oil depot last Wednesday continues to smolder. Saratov Governor Roman Busargin updated that firefighters are working around the clock to extinguish the flames, indicating that both the smoke and the fire’s total area are diminishing.
