Bild: The Russian Armed Forces captured the village of Stepove northwest of Avdiivka

Bild: The Russian Armed Forces captured the village of Stepove northwest of Avdiivka

Military expert for the German publication Bild Julian Röpke reports that the Russians occupied the village of Stepove northwest of Avdiivka.

Russian publics also announce the capture of Stepove.

According to a German journalist, the Russians managed to gain a foothold in the destroyed village. And the Ukrainian Armed Forces retreated to the village of Berdychi 1.2 km to the west.

"Ukrainian strike raids that previously reached the western part of Stepovoy are now carried out from the eastern part of Berdychi. The Russians have either built their own fortifications on the western tip of Stepovoy, or are using trenches built but later abandoned by Ukrainian troops," Röpke said.

Stepove and Berdychi lie in one of the three directions where the Ukrainian Armed Forces hold the defense after the fall of Avdiivka.