Ukraine Claims Recapture Of Villages In Counter Offensive Against Russia
Ukraine says it has liberated three villages in the south-east of the country in the first victories of its much-anticipated counter-offensive.
Footage on social media showed Ukrainian troops celebrating in the neighbouring settlements of Blahodatne and Neskuchne in the Donetsk region. Ukraine’s Deputy Defence Minister said nearby Makarivka was also taken.
These three settlements would be the first liberated since his comments, but not the first that Ukraine has recaptured since Monday, when pockets of its forces began to advance in the country’s south.
Russia has yet to confirm the fall of any of the villages, instead speaking of repelling Ukrainian assaults in the region.
Elsewhere, Ukraine says Russia has blown up another dam in the Zaporizhzhia region, following the destruction of the major Kakhovka dam on Monday, which caused widespread flooding and mass evacuations.
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On Sunday, President Zelensky said 4,000 people had now been evacuated. Ukraine says the dam was blown up by Russian forces, who have controlled it since February 2022.
The U.N. and other aid groups say access to fresh drinking water is a crucial need and the possible spread of water-borne disease a big worry.
On Sunday, a local official said three people were killed when Moscow’s troops opened fire on a boat evacuating people from Russian-occupied areas.
Late Sunday, Zelenskyy said envoys from the International Criminal Court have visited the region to investigate the disaster, which has driven thousands from their homes, and left at least 14 people dead.
“It is very important that the representatives of international justice have seen the consequences of this Russian act of terrorism with their own eyes and heard for themselves that Russian terror continues,” Zelenskyy said.
Ukrainian authorities have accused Russian forces, which controlled the area around the dam, of deliberately destroying it. Russian officials have blamed Ukrainian shelling for its destruction.
