….About 1,300 Ukranian troops dead, says Zelensky
Russian shelling in the cities of Severodonetsk and Rubizhne in the Luhansk region has damaged dozens of apartments and sparked massive blazes, according to the Ukrainian State Emergency Service (SES).
Around 60 buildings, including private homes and apartment buildings, were hit overnight, according to government estimates that have not been independently verified.
“The enemy will not break the Luhansk region!” the SES posted on its Telegram channel, adding: “Let’s hold on! Everything will be UKRAINE!”
The news comes as air raid sirens are sounding throughout most of the country, according to the Kyiv Independent.
“Air raid alerts in almost every region of Ukraine,” the newspaper posted online around 04:00 local time (02:00GMT).
Residents have been asked to seek shelter immediately in cities including Lviv, in western Ukraine, and Poltava – a central eastern city where thousands of evacuees have recently fled from frontline cities.
