Sievierodonetsk: Ukrainian Forces Stage Tactical Retreat After Weeks of Heavy Fighting, Redeploy to Lysychansk

• Russian forces have taken control of the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk following over a month of some of the bloodiest fighting of the war
• Ukrainian forces have redeployed following a tactical retreat to the more defensible city of Lysychansk on the other side of the Siverskyi Donets river
• The Russian military has increased its missile attacks with over 40 missiles fired into Ukraine in the past 24 hours

KYIV - After five months of intense fighting following the illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine, the invading forces have made slow progress and have been repeatedly bogged down and harrassed by determined resistance from the Ukrainian army.

After over a month of some of the bloodiest fighting of the war, akin to the siege of Mariupol', Ukrainian forces have surrendered the city of Sievierodonetsk to the Russian forces.

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Not much remains of the city which has been reduced to rubble following weeks of artillery bombardment.

The Ukrainian forces have redeployed to the more secure city of Lysychansk on the other side of the Siverskyi Donets river.

Despite Russia's huge army and resources, they have made little progress and the capture of Sievierodonetsk is an empty victory. The town was once the home to 100 000 people but is now a wasteland according to TimesLIVE.

The capture of Sievierodonetsk came at a significant cost to the Russian forces which had expended vast amounts of manpower and equipment.

Missile strikes rain down

CNN reported that Russia has launched over 40 missile strikes on Ukraine in the past 24 hours. Russian forces have increased the frequency of artillery attacks around Kharkiv.

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Ukrainian defenders have reportedly shot down approximately 10 missiles. Lviv in western Ukraine was reportedly hit by missiles targeting military facilities.

Major US sports brand Nike pulls out of Russia amid Ukraine invasion

Earlier, Briefly News reported that sportswear giant, Nike is the latest brand to pull out completely from Russia amid its war on Ukraine.

Three months ago, the US company suspended its operations in the country along with several other brands. Companies that are open in the country are independent partners.

In a statement released by Nike, it said the company made the decision to leave the Russian marketplace. According to SABC News, Nike said its priority is to ensure employees are fully supported while the brand responsibly scales down operations over the coming months.

Source: Briefly News