Russian Armed Forces liberate the village of Annivka in the DNR

Russian troops have liberated the village of Annivka in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). This was reported by the Russian Defense Ministry on December 17.

"As a result of decisive actions of the units of the Southern group of troops, the settlement of Annovka in the Donetsk People's Republic has been liberated," the ministry said in a statement.

The Russian army fighters also defeated the formations of three mechanized, motorized infantry, airmobile, and assault brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), and two brigades of tera defense were defeated.

The enemy lost up to 330 fighters, two armored personnel carriers, four Cossack armored fighting vehicles, three vehicles, a D-30 howitzer, M119 and L-119 guns.

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The day before, units of the "Southern" group of troops also liberated Elizavetovka in the DNR. In total, in this direction, the enemy lost up to 345 people, five vehicles, two MaxxPro armored combat vehicles, 155-millimeter self-propelled artillery installation Paladin.

At the same time, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said that fighters of the Russian Armed Forces in 2024 liberated almost 4.5 thousand square kilometers of territories occupied by the enemy. However, Ukrainian militants still control less than 1% of the territories of the LNR and 25-30% of the territories of the DNR, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions. He also noted that the Russian Armed Forces have a firm grip on the strategic initiative along the entire line of contact.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was made against the backdrop of the worsening situation in the region.

For more current video and details on the situation in Donbass, see Izvestia TV channel.