This video purports to show pro-Russia militiamen firing shells at already devastated buildings allegedly occupied by Ukrainian soldiers in besieged Sievierodonetsk.
Zenger News obtained the footage from the People’s Militia (NM) of the LPR (Luhansk People’s Republic) earlier today (Friday, May 27).
The video shows soldiers in a rural area loading shells into an artillery system, which they proceed to fire.
The clip intersperses these shots with images of already heavily-damaged buildings in an urban area being blasted.
The militia said (in Russian): “Artillerymen of the NM LPR destroyed the stronghold of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Severodonetsk.”
Severodonetsk is the transliterated spelling of the Russian name for the embattled city of Sievierodonetsk, which LPR forces are fighting fiercely to gain control of.
Heavy fighting is currently going on on the outskirts of the city, which is under almost continuous shelling as pro-Russia troops try to capture it.
The mayor of Sievierodonetsk said 60 percent of housing in the city had been completely destroyed and up to 90 percent of buildings damaged.
Elsewhere, pro-Russia forces have gained control of city of Lyman in Donetsk Oblast, according to Ukrainian officials, following what they called a well-organized attack.
And 10 have been killed and up to 35 wounded following Russian missile strikes on a Ukrainian military base in Dnipro Raion in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
Officials are claiming that Russian forces have scattered up to 500 Soviet-era mines in the Black Sea, making it impossible for Ukraine to export goods from its ports.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported earlier today that from 24th February to 27th May, Russia had lost about 29,750 troops in addition to 1,322 tanks, 3,246 armored fighting vehicles, 623 artillery systems, 201 multiple launch rocket systems, 93 air defense systems, 206 warplanes, 170 helicopters, 503 unmanned aerial vehicles, 115 cruise missiles, 13 warships, 2,226 military vehicles and fuel tankers, and 48 units of special equipment.
While the Russian MoD reported earlier today that over the same period, Ukraine had lost 179 warplanes, 127 helicopters, 1,019 unmanned aerial vehicles, 323 air defense systems, 3,266 tanks and armored fighting vehicles, 433 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,682 artillery systems, and 3,190 military vehicles.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 in what Russian President Vladimir Putin initially called a “special military operation” to “demilitarise and denazify” Ukraine.
The Kremlin is still calling it a “special military operation” but now says the goal is to “protect Donbass”. Today marks the 93rd day of the invasion.
