Russia-Ukraine war – live: Kyiv ‘kills almost 50’ of Putin’s elite soldiers before they reach key battlefield

Forty-nine elite Russian soldiers were killed on the way to defend a key battleground on the front line in Ukraine, it has been claimed. US think tank the Institute for the Study of War, citing a Russian military blogger, said the troops were killed in one day of fighting near the village of Staromayorske, Donetsk. The blogger posted an audio recording on 5 September purportedly from a soldier in the Russian 247th VDV Regiment in which the soldier claims that he has to retrieve bodies of Russian personnel near Staromayorske. “The Russian soldier’s claims suggest that elements of the 247th Regiment remain defending in the western Donetsk-eastern Zaporizhia Oblast area, despite claims from a prominent Russian source in late August that some elements are fighting in the Robotyne area,” the think tank said in a statement. Earlier, Ukraine’s ground forces commander said the situation along the eastern frontline remains “difficult”. Oleksandr Syrskyi added that the main task for Ukraine’s troops is to ensure reliable defence and prevent the loss of strongholds. Read More British Challenger 2 tank ‘destroyed in Ukraine’ – defence source Wagner to be declared a terrorist organisation, Home Office says Why Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un are desperate for each other’s help Drone warfare map reveals how Ukraine is striking Russia hundreds of miles from the frontline