Russian Forces Capture Ukrainian Village Near Avdiivka

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported on Tuesday that its forces have made further progress in eastern Ukraine by capturing the village of Severn near Avdiivka, a Ukrainian town that was taken earlier this month. The ministry stated that "Russian troops seized Severn and were able to occupy strategically better positions and launched attacks on gatherings of Ukrainian forces and military equipment near three other residential areas." Reuters could not independently verify these claims from the battlefield. The capture of Avdiivka follows months of fighting and represents Russia's first significant gain since it took the devastated city of Bakhmut in May. The Ministry of Defense added that "Russian forces also destroyed an Abrams tank provided by the United States." Russian officials stated that this was the first such strike since Washington began supplying Ukraine with these tanks in September.