Natalia Humeniuk, the head of the joint coordination press center of the Defence Forces of the South of Ukraine, said this at a briefing at the Media Center Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.
She also added that, while retreating, the enemy mined part of the territory.
Read more: Ukraine’s Military Shot Down 9 of 12 russia’s Cruise Missiles on Sunday (Video)
"We have advanced in various areas from four to several tens of kilometers. We have liberated areas of about 500 square kilometers. We can claim that the settlements of Kherson region - Visokopillia, Novovoznesenske, Bilohirka, Sukhyi Stavok and Myroliubivka have already been liberated today and are under the Ukrainian flag. However, shelling of these areas is still ongoing. While retreating, the enemy mined part of these areas, so all local residents should be careful. Over the past two weeks, we have eliminated more than 1,800 invaders, more than 500 units of armored vehicles, 122 tanks, two aircraft, two helicopters in the southern direction alone and about 10 cruise missiles," Humeniuk informed.
At the same time the Operational Command South published its operational update.
According to the update the situation in the Southern Buh operational zone remains tense and dynamic, but under the control of the Ukrainian defense forces.
Active hostilities are ongoing along the entire contact line. The invaders are trying to organize counter-offensive actions and are exerting fire pressure on units of the Ukrainian troops with missile and artillery strikes using aviation.
During the night, the enemy deployed jet fighters twice to attack the positions of the Ukrainian defenders. Russian troops also launched rocket attacks and used heavy artillery on territorial communities along the contact line and in the rear areas.
In particular, around midnight, the enemy fired S-300 missiles at the Bashtanka district of Mykolaiv region, hitting a transport infrastructure facility.
“Our aircraft and missile and artillery units launched more than 100 strikes on enemy positions, areas of concentration of manpower and military equipment in the rear, twice attacked pontoon crossing across the Inhulets and Dnipro Rivers," the command said.
It is emphasized that the Ukrainian defense forces keep under round-the-clock fire control bridges and crossings, preventing the invaders from replenishing their stocks of military equipment and ammunition.
According to the Operational Command South, the enemy lost 10 personnel, one T-72 tank, one self-propelled artillery system and one vehicle during last night.
As Defense Express reported, Ukraine Showed Rapid Progress in North. We also wrote that russians Frantically Abandoning Their Positions Amid Successful Counter-Offensive Of Ukrainian Troops.
Read more: 201 Days of the War: russian Casualties in Ukraine
