Russian forces say they have regained control of an eastern Ukrainian city whose defenses they breached about two weeks ago as Russian rockets killed at least three people in eastern villages.
Kiev did not immediately comment on Russia’s May 5 claim of capturing Ocheretyn, a town with a pre-war population of about 3,700 but which the fighting left largely in ruins.
However, if confirmed, it would be the latest in a series of battlefield setbacks for Ukrainian forces, which have struggled to contain the Russian offensive while also facing shortages of men and ammunition.
The violence came as Ukrainian Orthodox worshipers celebrated the third Easter since the Russian invasion by gathering at Kiev’s main cathedral and other churches across the country.
IN video President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, posted on Telegram and his website, called on Ukrainians to unite in prayer.
Ukrainian officials urged residents to mark Easter services online for security reasons.
“Ukraine is going through dark and difficult times. For the third Easter in a row, we are meeting during a total war. But light will always win over darkness, life will win over death, good will win over evil, and hope will surely win over fear,” he added. Serhiy Popko, head of the military administration of the capital of Ukraine, he wrote on Telegram.
In its daily update, the Russian Ministry of Defense he said troops from its Command Group Center took control of the city, but gave no further details.
Ukraine’s military has been boosted by a decision by the US Congress last month to send $61 billion in arms and equipment. However, it will take some time for weapons, grenades and vehicles to appear on the battlefield.
A newly passed law aimed at strengthening Ukrainian troops is also crucial, but training new soldiers will also take weeks, if not months.
In the north, Ukrainian forces are trying to blunt Russian efforts to capture the high-altitude town of Khasiv Yar.
Russian troops have entered the eastern edge of the city and are also trying to surround the settlement. But they were thwarted in their attempt to cross the main canal which separates the eastern quarter from the main centre.
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In Ocheretyn, meanwhile, Russian troops managed to push through Ukrainian defenses after what some observers called a botched troop rotation involving depleted troops.
From April 22, open intelligence maps show, Russian forces steadily pushed west and north from the village.
There were two people elsewhere killed overnight when Russian missiles hit their house in the village of Pokrovsk, about 40 kilometers west of Ocheretyn, according to Vadym Filashkin, the military governor of the still-Ukrainian-controlled Donetsk region.
Ukrainian authorities said another Russian strike on Monachynivka in the Kharkiv region killed an 88-year-old woman.
Ukraine’s military said Russia launched two dozen kamikaze drones over multiple targets overnight. All but one were shot down, the military claimed.
Russia’s weekly bombardment of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has caused more than $1 billion in damage, the country’s energy minister said, leading to blackouts in many regions.
“Today we are talking about more than a billion dollars in losses. But the attacks continue and it is clear that the losses will increase,” Herman Halushchenko said in a statement on May 5.
In Washington, the White House national security adviser said further progress from Russia was still expected “in the coming period” because “you can’t switch immediately”.
However, Jake Sullivan also spoke to the Financial Times on May 4 he said that Kyiv will have the capacity to “hold the line” and “ensure that Ukraine resists a Russian attack” through 2024.
Ukraine intends to “move forward to recapture the territory that the Russians took from them,” he said.