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4 mins ago
More than 500 civilians remain in Soledar as clashes continue, local authorities say
By Olga Voitovych
Smoke rises during fighting in Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on January 11. (Libkos/AP)
More than 500 civilians remain in Soledar as Russian and Ukrainian forces continue to fight for control of the city, according to Pavlo Kyrylenko, head of the Donetsk regional military administration.
Kyrylenko said Thursday on Ukrainian television that "now, there are 523 people there."
Most of the people who remain are over 50, he added, with "no information" that there are children among them.
“It won't be right if I say they don't want to leave now.
We are doing everything we can to help people leave," Kyrylenko said, adding that evacuation is "just unrealistic" at the moment.
Evacuations will resume "when I know it is possible to get there by special transport and get out of there," he said.
Russia claims to have made advances on Soledar in recent days, amid some of the fiercest fighting of the war.
7 mins ago
Ukraine claims 100 Russian soldiers were killed in attack near Soledar
By Olga Voitovych, Yulia Kesaieva and Josh Pennington
Ukrainian officials have claimed that an attack on a Russian position near the town of Soledar in eastern Ukraine has killed 100 Russian soldiers.
In a statement released Thursday, the Special Operations Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said they had detected an "enemy concentration" and used Soviet-designed artillery and missile system to carry out the attack.
“As a result of these various attacks, the destruction of more than 100 occupants, two machine gun crews and two mortar crews has been confirmed,” the Ukrainian army stated, praising the work of its “Special Forces warriors, gunners and rocket fighters.” ”.
CNN cannot independently verify the claim, and Kyiv did not provide any evidence of such an attack.
In recent weeks, Ukraine has claimed responsibility for a series of attacks that it says have killed large numbers of Russian soldiers.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said around 500 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded in an attack near Chulakivka, a town in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, on New Year's Eve.
CNN cannot independently verify that Ukrainian claim, and Moscow has not publicly commented on it.
However, both Ukraine and Russia acknowledged a bombing that took place just after midnight on New Year's Day at a vocational school housing Russian recruits in Makiivka, eastern Ukraine.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported that 89 Russian soldiers were killed in the attack, while the Ukrainian military reported higher figures, initially stating that up to 400 Russian soldiers were killed.
CNN cannot independently verify the death toll reported by either side, but that attack appears to be one of the deadliest episodes of the conflict for Moscow forces.
10 mins ago
Russian forces have committed 'a litany of violations' in Ukraine, rights group says
By Jack Guy
A man pushes a bicycle through rubble and destroyed Russian military vehicles in Bucha in April 2022. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Russian war crimes and wartime human rights abuses in Ukraine add to a "litany of violations of international humanitarian law," according to Human Rights Watch.
In the rights group's annual report that reviews human rights standards in nearly 100 countries, HRW said the evidence of war crimes in Bucha, a Kyiv suburb, is part of a pattern that "has been repeated countless times." .
HRW's World Report 2023 also highlights the bombing of a theater in Mariupol, despite signs warning that children are sheltering there, as well as attacks on other non-military targets.
"Inflicting suffering on civilians, such as repeated attacks on the energy infrastructure that Ukrainians depend on for electricity, water and heat, appears to be a central part of the Kremlin's strategy," the report read.
15 mins ago
Satellite photos show destruction in Soledar and Bakhmut
by CNN
As the fight for control of the cities of Soledar and Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine continues, new satellite images from Maxar Technologies show the extent of the destruction in the area.
Satellite image shows destroyed apartment buildings and homes in Soledar on January 3, 2022. (Maxar Technologies)
Satellite images show a destroyed school in Soledar on January 3, 2022. (Maxar Technologies)
Destroyed buildings in Soledar on January 3, 2022. (Maxar Technologies)
Some background: Soledar, a salt mine town in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, has been the scene of heavy fighting in recent days and a target for Russian forces since last May.
The head of Russia's private military company claimed on Tuesday that his forces had seized control of "the entire territory of Soledar", but Kyiv officials deny the claim and insist fighting continues.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday that Russia sees its attempted capture of Soledar as a propaganda tool to maintain domestic support for its war.
If Russian troops did capture the city, it would be Moscow's first victory in Donbas in months, which could offer President Vladimir Putin welcome news after a series of battlefield defeats since last summer.
Russian War