Ukrainian Brigade Spokesman Retracts Claim of 40% of Chasiv Yar Under Russian Control

Andriy Polukhin, a spokesperson for the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo, has retracted his earlier statement that Russian troops control 40 percent of the town of Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region.

Polukhin told Free Radio that he had made a mistake in his calculations.

“It was my mistake. I looked at the DeepState map in the morning, before the broadcast, and for some reason, I decided that it was 40 percent,” he said.

“I looked horizontally at the length of Chasiv Yar, and there is a percentage of the administrative borders of large districts vertically… And there are none in DeepState. We are already preparing a statement from the brigade,” the spokesman added.

He clarified that Russian troops control a part of Chasiv Yar up to the beginning of the Kanal district. According to Polukhin, this position prevents the Russians from approaching Ukrainian units undetected. He added that the Russians are sending small groups of up to 12 soldiers into assaults.

On Thursday, Aug. 29, Kyiv Post, citing Polukhin’s statement, reported that Russian troops now control approximately 40 percent of Chasiv Yar.

Polukhin also warned that if the town falls, Russian troops would gain a tactical advantage due to the elevated terrain, which overlooks the cities of Kostyantynivka, Druzhkivka, and Kramatorsk, as well as the logistical route connecting them.

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Chasiv Yar is located in the eastern Donetsk region, just 10 km from Bakhmut and 65 km from Donetsk. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, the town had a population of approximately 14,000. Heavy fighting has been ongoing in this area for an extended period.

Polukhin reported that as a result of the hostilities, the town has been devastated, similar to the destruction seen in Bakhmut and Avdiivka: “These are just ruins. The enemy does not consider these territories theirs; it simply destroys everything in its path.”

At the beginning of July, Ukrainian forces withdrew from the Kanal microdistrict in Chasiv Yar, Nazar Voloshyn, spokesperson for the Khortytsia operational and strategic group of troops, told Kyiv Post.

“The positions of the Ukrainian defenders were destroyed, and keeping personnel there posed a threat to the lives of our soldiers,” he said.

In mid-June, reports indicated that Russian forces in the Donetsk region were approaching Chasiv Yar, a town strategically located on high ground, as well as Pokrovsk, a critical rail hub where fighting was most intense.

According to Voloshyn, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) units withdrew to more prepared and protected positions.

Analysts from the DeepState project reported that as of July 3, the Russian army had occupied the Kanal neighborhood in Chasiv Yar after destroying that part of the city.

The report suggested that remaining in the ruins would only increase losses due to logistical problems, so leaving the neighborhood was a logical, though difficult, decision. Holding Kanal had been advantageous when Russian troops were advancing, according to DeepState.