A Ukrainian soldier at the front in the city of Vuhledaru, pictured on February 25, 2023.
Kyiv – The Ukrainian military said today that Russia launched an unsuccessful offensive in the past day near Yahidne, a small village adjacent to the northwestern edge of Bakhmut. This was reported by the Reuters agency with reference to the morning operational report of the Ukrainian General Staff. The Russian mercenary Wagner (Vagnerov in Russian transliteration) group claimed on Saturday to have seized this village in eastern Ukraine, near the focus of intense fighting. This claim could not be independently verified.
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Photo gallery: Russian invasion of Ukraine
The leader of the Wagnerites, Yevgeny Prigozhin, announced on Saturday that his troops had captured Jahidne. On Friday, he claimed control of Berchivka, an adjacent village on the outskirts of Bakhmut. The Ukrainian General Staff then stated that Russian invasion forces had undertaken several unsuccessful offensive actions in the direction of Bakhmut, and mentioned in this context the area around Berchivka, and today also Jahidne.
“Russia continues to focus its main efforts on conducting offensive operations in the directions of Kupyansk, Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdijivka and Shakhtarsk,” noted the command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Over the past day, Ukrainian forces have repelled about 71 enemy attacks in these areas.
Three residents were killed and four injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region on Saturday, local governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said.
Fierce fighting along the front line in southern and eastern Ukraine, particularly near Bakhmut, now boils down to creeping attempts by both sides to move the line, sometimes by just a few meters, according to Reuters. Russia advanced its encirclement of Bakhmut, but failed to capture it in time for President Vladimir Putin to announce victory on the anniversary of the invasion on Friday. between Crimea and mainland Russia,” Deputy Chief of Ukrainian Intelligence Vadym Skibicky told German media.
