Russia claims capturing 8 Ukrainian settlements over past week

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Friday that eight Ukrainian settlements came under the control of its forces in a week.

The ministry said in a statement that the last advancement was made over the past 24 hours, and that the settlement of Kosivtsovo in the Zaporizhzhia region was captured by the Vostok group of forces.

"During the week, units of the North group of forces actively took control of the village of Vysoke in the Sumy region. In the Kharkiv direction, as a result of active actions, the settlements of Vil'kha and Prylypka in the Kharkiv region have been taken under control," it said.

Also, units of the Southern Group of Forces captured the settlement of Sviato-Pokrovske in the Donetsk region, while units of the Center group of forces took under control the settlement of Svitlodarsk in the same region, and the Vostok group of forces -- Andriivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region, as well as Zarechne in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian General Staff reported another drone attack, claiming an object of the Russian oil company Lukoil in the city of Volgograd was hit.

Also, Ukraine's regional authorities said multiple objects of energy infrastructure were hit in Russia's overnight air strike, including in Odesa and Chernihiv regions.

Independent verification of claims of both sides is challenging due to the ongoing conflict.