Russia liberates two more eastern Ukrainian villages

Russia has claimed two new east Ukrainian villages, fighting fiercely against the Ukrainian forces, who struggle to hold the Russian troops back.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Monday the Russian forces took the village of Novopokrovske in the eastern Donetsk region and the village of Stepova Novoselivka in the northeast Kharkiv region, as they continue to pile pressure on Kiev forces in several directions for weeks.

The gains came after Russia freed two other villages over the weekend. Russian troops have been steadily pushing westwards since they took the industrial hub of Avdiivka in February.

Russian troops have announced the capture of a fresh village in Ukraine’s east almost every week this summer.

The village of Stepova Novoselivka in the northeast Kharkiv region is located southeast of the city of Kupyansk, where Russia has also been on the advance for months.

Kupyansk was liberated by Russian troops at the start of Moscow's special military operation in eastern Ukraine in February 2022 but Kiev forces captured the city several months later.

Russian troops launched a renewed local offensive in the Kharkiv region in May.

Over 1,700 Ukrainian forces killed in 24 hours: Russia

Russia’s Defense Ministry says more than 1,700 Ukrainian forces were killed in 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Kiev forces have launched deadly artillery and drone attacks on Russian regions bordering Ukraine causing power outages and water supply cuts on Monday.

Deadly drone strikes and shelling on the border region of Belgorod over the past day killed a four-year-old girl and wounded seven people, Belgorod’s Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.

“There have been power restrictions since early morning,” Belgorod’s Mayor, Valentin Demidov, wrote on Telegram, saying that the “situation is complex but under control.”

The Mayor added that in some parts of the city, the power cuts also affected the water supply.

He further added that air raid sirens were not working in areas with power cuts and cars with loud horns were driving through the streets to sound the alarm. Traffic lights were also not working, and police were checking the main roads.

The Governor said 150 kindergartens were without power and water supplies to hospitals were affected.

Gladkov said the usual number for calling ambulances was not working and listed mobile phone numbers to call.

He added that in a “number of settlements” around the border town of Graivoron, “there is temporarily no electricity.”

Governor Alexei Smirnov in the neighboring Kursk region warned that “due to technical issues on power lines in neighboring regions, a deficit of electricity capacity could arise in the Kursk region.”

Smirnov said the Kursk region came under Kiev forces' drone attack overnight; however, Russian air defenses shot down the seven Ukrainian drones.

The regional government in the neighboring Voronezh region said some areas were under power restrictions to prevent damage to energy facilities due to overloading of the network.

Earlier, Governor Alexander Gusev had warned about possible drone attacks overnight.

Since war broke out in eastern Ukraine, the US-led Western countries have been providing Kiev with a continuous supply of arms and ammo.

Last month, Ukraine's American backers removed restrictions on Kiev, giving its forces permission to strike targets inside Russia.

Ukraine has also received permission from its main European backers -- namely, Germany, France, and the UK-- to use weaponry supplied by these countries to strike targets deep inside Russia.

Russia has repeatedly warned against flooding Ukraine with weapons and ammunition, adding that it would take retaliatory measures against the West if the weaponry is used on targets inside Russia.

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