Russian forces have captured the village of Vovche in Donetsk Oblast, the crowd-sourced monitoring website DeepState reported on July 27, though the news has yet to be officially confirmed by Ukraine.
Moscow's troops are attempting to break through Ukrainian defenses in the area, and the sector near Pokrovsk in the western part of Donetsk Oblast has become the hottest part of the front in recent weeks.
Speaking to Liga.net, a Ukrainian news site, on July 26, the commander of the 47th Mechanized Brigade stationed in the area said Vovche had fallen to Russian forces along with the nearby village of Progres.
When asked to confirm if Russia had taken Vovche, a spokesperson for the 47th Mechanized Brigade told the Kyiv Independent on July 27 that "according to DeepState, (it has been) captured."
A spokesperson for the Khortytsia group of forces did not comment when approached by the Kyiv Independent, but an update from the group on Telegram on the morning of July 27 listed Vovche among several areas where it said Ukrainian forces had stopped Russian assaults.
In his daily address on July 26, President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke generally about fighting in the Pokrovsk sector, which he described as "the main target of Russian attacks."
"Everything necessary will be done to strengthen our positions and our capability to inflict significant losses on the occupiers," he added.
He did not refer to the situation in Vovche.
Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi said earlier this week that Russia continues to push toward Pokrovsk despite suffering heavy losses.
Moscow's troops are also reportedly attempting to develop an offensive west of the occupied and deserted cities of Avdiivka and Marinka to make their way toward Pokrovsk and Kurakhove.
Russia captured Marinka in December 2023 and Avdiivka two months later after both cities were largely destroyed in heavy battles.
"Russia threw a lot of forces into the capture of the village of Ocheretyne, so they can rush the Pokrovsk-Kostiantynivka highway from there" to capture this vital route, Voloshyn said.
Last week, Ukraine confirmed its withdrawal from the village of Urozhaine in the southwestern part of Donetsk Oblast "to preserve the lives and health of our personnel" due to the village's complete destruction by Russian forces.
George Ivanchenko
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