MORE than 100 Russian soldiers have been killed in a single missile strike, Ukraine claims.
It comes amid a brutal battle for the salt mining town Soledar in eastern Ukraine.
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Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of Russian private military firm Wagner and a close ally of Vladimir Putin, said his forces had captured all of Soledar.
The Ukrainian military, however, insisted the battle was not over.
On Thursday, Ukraine said it had used a Soviet-era Tochka-U missile to blast and kill a group of more than 100 Russian soliders after they were spotted with a drone.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said: “Over a hundred Russian occupiers were eliminated in the Soledar area.
“This happened thanks to the coordinated work of soldiers of the Special Operations Forces, gunners and rocket launchers.”
The strike also destroyed military equipment, it said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mocked previous Wagner claims to have seized part of Soledar.
He said in a video address: “The terrorist state and its propagandists are trying to pretend that part of our town of Soledar … is some sort of a Russian possession.
“But fighting continues.”
Ukraine’s deputy defence minister said Kyiv’s forces were still holding out in Soledar despite a massive Russian onslaught.
If Russia captures the town, it would be the most substantial gain since a series of humiliating retreats throughout much of the second half of last year.
Britain said Russia had most likely seized most of Soledar as it tries to take control of the nearby city of Bakhmut.
Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov said the situation in Soledar was “approaching that of critical”.
He said on YouTube: “The Ukrainian armed forces are holding their positions. About one half of the town is under our control.
“Fierce fighting is going on near the town centre.”
It comes after dramatic footage from the besieged city of Bakhmut showed fierce Ukrainian soldiers blasting Putin’s troops with grenades before opening fire on the unit.
The four commandos executed the operation with the help of a night drone and the commander of Ukraine’s special tactical group “Adam”.
The Ukrainian forces reportedly wiped out 15 Russian soldiers and another six were captured.
Meanwhile, a Royal Navy boat has intercepted a Russian warship carrying Putin’s new “unstoppable” 7,000mph hypersonic missiles.
HMS Portland tracked the guided missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov as it sailed close to the UK in the North Sea.
The Type-23 frigate shadowed Vladimir Putin’s warship that set sail with much fanfare for a mission to the Atlantic.
Admiral Gorshkov – which weights up to 5,400 tons and is 442ft long – has carried out war games while heading for the UK.
Zircon missiles she is carrying on board have not yet been used in combat and they are one of Putin’s “super weapons”.
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Katie Davis
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