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LATEST: Ukrainian forces withdraw from Vuhledar in Donetsk Oblast
Russian troops have entered the embattled town of Vuhledar in Donetsk Oblast, Governor Vadym Filashkin said on Oct. 1, adding that fighting is ongoing.
Speaking on national television, Filashkin described the situation as "extremely difficult," adding: "The enemy has already almost reached the center of the town."
"The fighting is going on within the town, so it is almost impossible to bring in humanitarian aid."
Later in the day, videos emerged on social media showing Russian soldiers flying the country's flag on the roof of an apartment building in the town.
Geolocated to the northern streets of Vuhledar's small and dense urban area, the videos suggest that a complete Ukrainian withdrawal from the town is highly likely.
A total of 107 civilians remain in Vuhledar, though all children have been evacuated, he added.
Ukraine's 72nd Mechanized Brigade has defended Vuhledar for nearly two years, as Russian forces have been trying to capture the town since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
On Sept. 26, the brigade refuted reports that it was retreating and released a video from the town.
According to the crowd-sourced monitoring website DeepState on Oct. 1, Russian soldiers entered Vuhledar from the west and south.
In recent days, Russian forces advanced northeast of Vuhledar and on the western outskirts of the town, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on Sept. 30, citing geolocated footage.
The front-line town lies about 50 kilometers (30 miles) southwest of occupied Donetsk and roughly 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of the administrative border with Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
Vuhledar has withstood numerous attacks since the outbreak of the full-scale war in 2022 and has become key to Ukrainian defenses in the southern part of Donetsk Oblast.
"Potentially (its loss could) threaten the security of the entire southwestern portion of Donetsk Oblast not yet occupied," Federico Borsari, a fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), told the Kyiv Independent earlier in September.
Vuhledar is located north of a key intersection connecting the O-0532 road towards Vodiane and Kostiantynivka, a small paved road toward Kurakhove, and the partly occupied T-0509 highway toward Velyka Novosilka.
"It is, therefore, a key logistic point for Ukrainian forces defending the southern flank of Kurakhove," Borsari said.
Given the Russian significant advance towards Pokrovsk from the east in recent weeks, Ukrainian forces need to avoid a similar development from the south to avoid the risk of encirclement, Borsari added.
Vuhledar is also the last fortified town before the village of Velyka Novosilka and the entire southern part of Donetsk Oblast that Ukraine controls. The occupied section of the T-0509 highway, which passes south of Vuhledar, is essential for Russian forces trying to advance westward.
Kateryna Hodunova
