Russian forces storming Ukrainian town of Vuhledar, bloggers and media say

Russian forces have begun storming the eastern Ukrainian town of Vuhledar, a stronghold that has resisted Russian attack since the beginning of the 2022 war, according to Russian war bloggers and state media.

“Russian units have entered Vuhledar – the storm of the town has begun,” said Yuri Podolyaka, a Ukrainian-born, pro-Russian military blogger. Multiple pro-Russian war bloggers confirmed the attack.

Russian state media said the hilltop town in the Donetsk region, which some cast as a fortress due to its enduring resistance to Russian attack, was caught in a pincer movement by Russian forces and that battles were underway in the east of the settlement.

Unverified video on social media showed a town under heavy artillery fire.

Russian forces in eastern Ukraine advanced at their fastest rate in two years in August, according to multiple open source maps, even though a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk region sought to force Moscow to divert troops.

Ukraine’s general staff said on Tuesday that Russia had made attempts to capture Ukrainian positions near Pavlivka and Vuhledar, but gave no further details. There was no immediate comment from the Russian defense ministry.