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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
John Dunne

Ukraine ‘liberates three villages’ as counter-offensive against Russia gathers pace

Ukraine says it has liberated three settlements in the south east of the country as it gears up its counter-offensive.

Footage on social media showed Ukrainian troops celebrating in the neighbouring settlements of Blahodatne and Neskuchne in the Donetsk region.

Kyiv’s deputy defence minister said nearby Makarivka was also taken. President Volodymyr Zelensky officially said the offensive had begun Saturday.

These three settlements would be the first liberated since his comments, but not the first that Ukraine has recaptured since Monday, when pockets of its forces began to advance in the country’s south.

Moscow has only spoken of beating back Ukrainian assaults in the region.

Meanwhile Ukraine claims Russia has blown up another dam in the Zaporizhzhia region, following the destruction of the major Nova Kakhovka on Monday, which caused widespread flooding.

Ukraine says the dam was blown up by Russian forces who have controlled it since February 2022.

Valeriy Shershen, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military, said Moscow’s forces had chosen to blow up a second dam near the village of Novodarivka, which “led to the flooding on both banks of the Mokri Yaly river”.

Mr Shershen said Russia was deliberately blowing up dams in the region to halt Ukraine’s advance towards occupied areas.

Russia has denied it blew up the Nova Kakhovka dam and has blamed Ukraine for the damage which has speaked a humanitarean crisis in the area.

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