Fighting for control of the strategic hub of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine is intensifying, with the Russian Defense Ministry claiming to have eliminated a group of Ukrainian special forces sent to help defend the area.
In recent weeks, Russian units have begun penetrating Pokrovsk itself and have closed in on the last resupply routes used to sustain Ukrainian forces in the town.
The Ukrainian special forces had landed in a helicopter on the northwestern outskirts of Pokrovsk, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Drone footage shared by an unofficial Russian Telegram channel showed Ukrainian soldiers fanning out from a Blackhawk helicopter. Eleven of the troops that had landed were killed, the Defense ministry claimed. It’s unclear when the mission took place.
A source in Ukrainian intelligence told CNN that the claim was untrue. Stabilization efforts led by the head of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Kyrylo Budanov continue in Pokrovsk, the source added.
The Ukrainian 7th Aerial Assault Corps also said there had been a successful landing in the Pokrovsk area. “It was a complex operation that required the synchronized actions of various units,” it said.
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