Kyiv refutes Russia's claims of capturing village in Donetsk Oblast
Ukraine controls the situation near the village of Yasnobrodivka in Donetsk Oblast, Lieutenant Colonel Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesperson of the Khortytsia group of forces, told the Kyiv Independent on July 10.
The statement comes after the Russian Defense Ministry claimed on July 9 that its forces had captured Yasnobrodivka, a front-line village located some 45 kilometers (27 miles) from the town of Pokrovsk.
Voloshyn dismissed these claims, saying, "This is another Russian lie. Defense forces control the situation near this village."
Moscow's forces lost some 274 soldiers killed and injured in this sector, according to Voloshyn. Ukraine also reportedly destroyed two cannons, a mortar, and eight vehicles and damaged other equipment.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
Russia is carrying out intense attacks in multiple sections of the eastern front, including in Donetsk Oblast, after it captured the city of Avdiivka in February.
Earlier in July, Ukrainian troops have withdrawn from the Kanal neighborhood of the embattled town of Chasiv Yar in the region.
Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi said on July 2 that fighting had been particularly intense in recent weeks around the town of Toretsk, located some 25 kilometers (15 miles) south of Chasiv Yar.
Chris York
