Over 21,000 civilians, including 115 children, remain in Donetsk Oblast combat zones, official says
At least 21,700 civilians, including 115 children, remain in the active combat zones of Donetsk Oblast, Dmytro Petlin, head of the Department of Civil Protection, Mobilization, and Defense Work of the local military administration, said during an online briefing on Aug. 7.
Most of the children are located in the Lyman urban territorial community, according to Petlin.
The Donetsk Oblast Military Administration has classified 18 communities as active combat zones, including Shakhovsk, Maryinka, Toretsk, Pokrovsk, Myrnohrad, Chasiv Yar, Bakhmut, Soledar, Zvaniv, Siversk, Illinivsk, Kostiantynivka, Udachne, Lyman, Hrodivka, Kurakhove, Ocheretynske, and Novoselivka.
Ukraine has largely maintained a defensive posture in the east as Russia's summer offensive continues its steady advance.
According to the official, a total of over 1.2 million civilians have been evacuated from their permanent residences in the Ukrainian-controlled territory of Donetsk Oblast. Among them are approximately 194,000 children and 47,000 people with disabilities.
In the past week alone, more than 7,800 people, including 380 children, have been evacuated from the region. Mandatory evacuation in Donetsk Oblast has been ongoing since August 2, 2022.
As tensions persist in the region, diplomatic efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war appear to be gaining momentum.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Aug. 7 that discussions are underway on both bilateral and trilateral summits, following Moscow’s confirmation of an upcoming meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Preparations for the meeting are underway, while the venue has already been agreed upon, Russian foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said, according to state-owned news agency TASS. This would mark the first meeting between the presidents since Trump took office on Jan. 20.
