Ukraine captures Russian town, Zelenskyy says

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian troops took full control of the Russian town of Sudzha, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine said Thursday, in what would be Ukraine’s first capture of a Russian urban center since its troops launched a surprise attack into the country 10 days ago.

Sudzha, a small town about 6 miles from the border, quickly fell into the path of Ukrainian troops sweeping into Russian territory over the past week. Military experts had said in recent days that Ukrainian forces had seized most, if not all, of the town. And Emil Kastehelmi, an analyst from the Black Bird Group based in Finland, on Thursday called it “very likely” that it was “now controlled by Ukraine.”

Ukrainian troops entered Sudzha a few days into the assault and appeared to have slowly cleared the town and its outskirts of any defenders over the past week, according to military analysts. Videos posted online in recent days by Ukrainian soldiers showed troops in the town, and Ukrainian state television broadcast a report from Sudzha on Wednesday showing soldiers tearing down a Russian flag from a building. Satellite imagery showed at least two dozen structures were damaged or destroyed in the town and a neighboring village.

Before the assault, Sudzha had about 5,000 residents, many of whom fled, according to residents who joined tens of thousands of others evacuating from parts of the border region. Zelenskyy said Wednesday that “hundreds of Russian soldiers” had surrendered in the region since the start of the attack, though Ukrainian authorities have declined to share precise details.

The capture of Sudzha could further lift the spirits of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers who have already been buoyed by Ukraine’s daring, and so far relatively successful, incursion after months of losing ground at home. Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukraine’s top commander, said in a statement Thursday that his troops now controlled an area of about 450 square miles in Russia, a claim that could not be independently confirmed.

On Wednesday, Ukraine said it launched a large drone attack on four military airfields deep inside Russia — including several in or near the Kursk region — hitting and damaging at least two bases.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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