[Dargo]

Ukrainians still holding out in Severodonetsk

The Ukrainian army is still holding out in the Severodonetsk industrial area. "Severodonetsk is not, yet, 100 percent liberated," the leader of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Lugansk told the Russian news agency Interfax. "The Ukrainian military is still in the industrial area where the Azot chemical plant is located. From there they are shelling the city. You cannot possibly call the situation in the city peaceful." He is convinced that the Russians or pro-Russian separatists will take control of the area in the near future.

Other sources also suggest that Severodonetsk is still being fought hard. The British Ministry of Defense, in its update this morning, says that there is fierce fighting and heavy casualties on both sides.

Severodonetsk is the last major city in the Lugansk region still in Ukrainian hands. President Zelensky said Thursday that the battle there could be decisive for the future of the Donbas. That is the easternmost part of Ukraine, which includes the Donetsk region.