OSCO: Over the past 24 hours, a Ukrainian military spokesman estimates that more than 500 Russian troops have been killed or wounded in the battle for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.
The eastern Donbas region of Bakhmut has been the target of pro-Moscow forces’ fighting for months. Both sides have suffered heavy losses, though precise figures are hard to confirm.
A military spokesman for the eastern forces, Serhiy Cherevaty, claimed that the Russians had launched 16 attacks in the preceding 24 hours, with 23 skirmishes occurring in Bakhmut alone.
During the conflict, “221 enemies were killed and 314 sustained injuries of various degrees,” he said on national television.
Cherevaty’s comments did not make it clear whether he was referring to casualties over the past 24 hours or those on Friday.
Immediately, Reuters was unable to confirm the claim.
On Friday, an aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kiev had decided to continue fighting in Bakhmut despite the battle wearing down Russia’s best units.
The industrial region of Donbas is a major target for Russia, and taking Bakhmut would supposedly be a major opening in Ukrainian defenses.
There have been tens of thousands of deaths, millions of people displaced, and many Ukrainian cities and towns completely destroyed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February of last year.
