Fierce fighting persists in Ukraine’s east as Kyiv reports nonstop assaults by Russia on a key city
Ukrainian officials have reported intense combat that is characterized by relentless assaults by Russian forces on the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ukrainian officials reported intense combat, characterized by relentless assaults by Russian forces, as the ongoing attack on an eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka entered its fifth consecutive day on Saturday.
“The enemy has not stopped either assaulting or shelling positions" around Avdiivka, city head Vitalii Barabash said on Ukrainian television.
Barabash also reported that Moscow was deploying additional forces to encircle the strategically important city in the eastern Donetsk region, situated just north of the Moscow-held regional capital, also called Donetsk.
Around 1,600 civilians remain within the city, a stark contrast to its prewar population of about 31,000.
Barabash’s comments came after Russia’s U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, told a U.N. Security Council meeting on Friday that the intensified attacks in the east amounted to a new stage in Moscow’s campaign in Ukraine.
“Russian troops have, for several days now, switched over to active combat action practically throughout the entire front line … The so-called Ukrainian counteroffensive can therefore be considered finished,” he said.
But Ukrainian President Voloydymr Zelenskyy said earlier this week that Ukrainian forces were keeping Russian troops at bay and “holding our ground.”
Further north, fighting along the northern stretch of Ukraine’s eastern front has “significantly worsened” in recent days, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine’s land forces, wrote on Facebook Saturday.
Syrskyi, who visited troops in the area, said that Russian forces had regrouped following losses and were mounting attacks around the village of Makiivka and pushing towards the city of Kupiansk, with the goal of encircling Kupiansk and reaching the Oskil River.
Also on Saturday, a 60-year-old woman was killed in Russian shelling of the city of Beryslav in Ukraine’s partly-occupied Kherson region.
In Russia, the country’s Defense Ministry said air defense systems shot down two Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea near the southern resort city Sochi on Saturday morning. Ukrainian officials have never acknowledged responsibility for attacks on Russian territory.