Doha:Moscow The Russian Ministry of Defense has reported that Russian military forces have successfully liberated the towns of Elisovka in the Kharkiv region and Barilovka in the Sumy region as part of their special military operation. In addition, a total of 617 Ukrainian drones have been shot down.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the Ministry’s statement detailed that the ‘North’ group of Russian forces was responsible for the liberation of the two towns. Meanwhile, the ‘West’ group improved their positions along the front line, targeting Ukrainian forces in the Kharkiv region and the Donetsk People’s Republic, resulting in significant Ukrainian losses. These included 240 military personnel, one armored combat vehicle, 15 other vehicles, two field artillery pieces, one combat vehicle equipped with a ‘Grad’ multiple-launch rocket system, and six electronic warfare stations.

The statement also revealed that the ‘Center’ group of Russian forces inflicted further losses on the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which included 335 soldiers, armored combat vehicles, several field artillery pieces, and two electronic warfare stations. The ‘East’ (Vostok) force group continued to make advancements into enemy defenses, targeting Ukrainian formations in the Zaporizhzhia region, resulting in the loss of over 215 Ukrainian military personnel, two armored combat vehicles, several other vehicles, and multiple field artillery pieces.

Additionally, the Russian Ministry of Defense noted that air defense systems have successfully destroyed and shot down 617 Ukrainian drones along with two Neptune missiles.