‘Enemy Did Not Leave a Single Building Intact’: Ukrainian Troops Partially Withdraw from Chasiv Yar

Ukrainian forces have withdrawn from the Kanal micro-district in the town of Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, Nazar Voloshyn, spokesman for the Khortytsia operational and strategic group of troops, told Kyiv Post in a phone interview.

“The positions of the Ukrainian defenders were destroyed, and keeping personnel there was a threat to the lives of our soldiers,” he said.

In mid-June, several reports disclosed that Russian forces in the Donetsk region were nearing Chasiv Yar, a town perched on strategic heights, and Pokrovsk, a rail hub where Ukraine says fighting is most intense.

According to Voloshyn, the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) withdrew to more prepared and protected positions.

“The enemy did not leave a single building intact; after the bombing and artillery shelling, it looks like a ‘moonscape,’” he added.

Voloshyn said that Russia spares neither its own personnel nor its military equipment.

“And for the Ukrainian defenders, even a small ‘retreat’ is not important enough tactically, but it saves the lives of our soldiers,” he said.

Over the past day, 238 bombardments were recorded in the area of Chasiv Yar following on from 257 the previous day, mostly targeting the southern part of the town.

Voloshyn added that 78 Russian soldiers were killed in the Chasiv Yar sector during the day, another 140 were wounded, and two were taken prisoner.

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The Ukrainian officer, who uses the callsign "Goth", was speaking to AFP in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russia made in November its largest gains in a month since March 2022.

In early July, the Suspilne Donbas media outlet, cited Voloshyn, while reporting that Russian forces began storming Chasiv Yar from the Toretsk sector with frontal attacks by small infantry groups.

“There are also mechanized assaults towards Chasiv Yar, while small groups of up to five fighters try to infiltrate the neighborhoods of Novy and Kanal,” Voloshyn said.

Analysts from the DeepState project reported that as of July 3, the Russian army had occupied the Kanal neighborhood in Chasiv Yar, after destroying that part of the city.

According to the report, staying in the ruins would only increase losses due to logistical problems, so leaving the neighborhood was a logical, though difficult, decision. It was beneficial to hold Kanal when Russian troops were advancing, as outlined by DeepState.

“The enemy completely occupied the Kanal district of Chasiv Yar. At the cost of huge losses and the actual destruction of all high-rise buildings, the Russians succeeded,” commented Bohdan Khodakovsky, commander of the Revansh tactical group.

“Despite the disproportionate losses, the fall of Chasiv Yar is closer. This has serious implications for the operational map of the Donetsk region,” he added.