Russian strikes on Chasiv Yar and Krasnohorivka in Donetsk Oblast killed two people and wounded another person on Jan. 2, the regional governor Vadym Filashkin reported.
The casualties come amid active fighting in the area as Russia seeks to occupy the entirety of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk Oblast.
In the front-line town of Chasiv Yar, Russian shelling hit a residential area, killing a 55-year-old woman and a 38-year-old man, according to Filashkin.
"Unfortunately, such shelling occurs regularly in Donetsk Oblast. Staying here is dangerous!" Filashkin said on Telegram, urging residents to evacuate as soon as possible.
Located just five kilometers west of Russian-occupied Bakhmut, Chasiv Yar was once home to over 13,000 people.
Krasnohorivka, where Russian attacks injured a resident on Jan. 2, lies immediately north of Marinka, the town completely destroyed as a result of intense fighting in the area.
Russia claimed to have fully captured Marinka on Dec. 25. Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi said the next day that Ukrainian troops remained in the town’s northern part.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, Russia’s alleged capture of Marinka represents a limited tactical gain and doesn’t allow for any significant operational advance unless Russian forces have considerably improved their ability to conduct rapid mechanized forward movement.
