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Russia claims capture of town near Pokrovsk, Kyiv says fighting ongoing in the area

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Russia claims capture of town near Pokrovsk, Kyiv says fighting ongoing in the area
The fog is covering the ground as the artillerymen of the 110th Marko Bezruchko Separate Mechanized Brigade, who are serving in the Pokrovsk direction, are heading for a position in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on August 7, 2024. NO USE RUSSIA. NO USE BELARUS. (Photo by Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Sept. 8 that its forces had captured the town of Novohrodivka in Donetsk Oblast, while Ukraine's military said that battles are ongoing in the area.

Novohrodivka is around 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Pokrovsk, an important logistical hub for Ukrainian forces. The sector is described by the Ukrainian military as the most difficult and has seen months-long fierce fighting.

Serhii Tsehotskyi, an officer with Ukraine's 59th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on Sept. 2 that the military command decided to withdraw from Novohrodivka because the town had "an unfavorable geographical location."

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Estimated Russian advance in the Pokrovsk sector, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, as of Sept. 9, 2024. (DeepState/OpenStreetMaps)

There were also unconfirmed reports that the town had been poorly fortified, and Russian soldiers captured it in a few days. The General Staff neither announced Ukraine's withdrawal from Novohrodivka nor commented on the claims.

In their daily updates, the military said that Ukrainian soldiers repel dozens of attacks near the settlements surrounding Pokrovsk, including Novohrodivka. The statement did not specify whether battles are ongoing within Novohrodivka itself or only in its vicinity.

The Kyiv Independent reached out to the Ukrainian military but has not received a response at the time of publication.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported capturing four other settlements near Pokrovsk over the past week: Zhuravka, Skuchne, Karlovka, and Zavitne. These claims could not be verified.

Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said that Russia's advance in the Pokrovsk direction had been halted in the past six days in an interview with CNN aired on Sept. 5. He linked this development to Ukraine's incursion into Russia's Kursk Oblast, which was designed to divert Russian forces from Pokrovsk and other hot sectors in Donetsk Oblast.

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As Russian troops approach Pokrovsk, fear mounts over a possible loss of what had long been a key logistic hub tucked away in safety in Donetsk Oblast. The war has arrived in Pokrovsk, once home to 60,000 people, with the Russians estimated to be about eight kilometers away. Thousands
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Kateryna Denisova

News Editor

Kateryna Denisova works as a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a news editor at the NV media outlet for four years, covering mainly Ukrainian and international politics. Kateryna holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv. She also was a fellow at journalism schools in the Czech Republic and Germany.

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