Overview

• Ukraine says its forces have reclaimed about 160 square kilometers near Dobropillja in an operation intended to disrupt a Russian pincer threatening Pokrovsk.
• Kyiv’s claim comes with caution from Ukrainian military observers and the pro-army portal DeepState, which say many of the cited localities remain contested or have recently changed hands.
• The Institute for the Study of War reports Russian units advancing from the south toward Pokrovsk and taking parts of the city’s southern outskirts.
• Local authorities say Pokrovsk is roughly 70% destroyed with about 1,200 residents remaining, and officials reported an exchange of about 1,000 Ukrainian and 24 Russian bodies.
• Ukrainian officers report Russian troops are infiltrating behind Ukrainian lines near Pokrovsk by dressing as civilians and avoiding combat to relay targeting information.