General Staff reports 'fiercest battles' in Bakhmut as Russia tries to advance in 5 areas

The "fiercest battles" between Russian and Ukrainian troops are taking place in the northern and southern parts of Donetsk Oblast's Bakhmut, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on March 22.

Russian forces are conducting offensives in the areas of Kupiansk, Lyman, Bakhmut, Shakhtarsk, Marinka, and Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine, according to the report.

Over the past 24 hours, Russia carried out 41 air strikes against Ukraine, a deadly missile attack on Zaporizhzhia, and 30 strikes using multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), the General Staff wrote in its evening update.

Russian troops also reportedly launched 21 Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones from its Bryansk region to attack Ukraine, killing and injuring civilians in Kyiv Oblast and damaging an energy site in Zhytomyr Oblast.

The Russian military shelled multiple settlements near the contact line and the Ukrainian-Russian border in the past day, Ukraine's military added.

Ukraine's Armed Forces hit 12 Russian temporary bases and one anti-aircraft complex, according to the General Staff.

UK Defense Ministry: 'Realistic possibility' Russia is losing momentum in Bakhmut

The Kyiv Independent