Russia Controls Most of Severodonetsk – UK Intelligence

“Russia has taken control of most of Severodonetsk,” the UK’s Ministry of Defence says in its latest assessment of the situation around the key battleground city in eastern Ukraine.

The main road into the Severodonetsk pocket “likely remains under Ukrainian control but Russia continues to make steady local gains, enabled by a heavy concentration of artillery,” the MoD’s Defence Intelligence adds.

“This has not been without cost, and Russian forces have sustained losses in the process.”

The assessment adds that crossing the Siverskyi Donets river – which is a natural barrier to its axes of advance – is vital for Russian forces as they secure Luhansk oblast [region] and prepare to switch focus to Donetsk oblast.

Ukrainian officials have admitted that as much as 80% of Severodonetsk is now in Russian hands, as fierce street fighting continues.

Severodonetsk, and its twin city Lysychansk – which for weeks have been under heavy Russian ‘bombardment’ – are the easternmost biggest cities still in Ukrainian hands.

BBC /Shakirat Sadiq