Russia claims it took control of 2 more settlements in Ukraine

By Kanyshai Butun and Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Russian Defense Ministry claimed Saturday that its forces captured two settlements in Ukraine's Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions.

The ministry claimed that forces took control of the village of Neskuchne in the northeastern Kharkiv region. The village is 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border.

It also claimed that its forces captured the village of Hirke in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region. The settlement is 12 kilometers west of the town of Huliaipole.

Ukrainian officials have not commented on the claims, and independent verification remains difficult due to the ongoing war, which entered its fifth year earlier this week.

Ukraine's General Staff said earlier that Russian forces launched 37 attacks in the area of eight settlements in the Huliaipole front, including Staroukrainka, which is located 3 kilometers east of Hirke.