Russian soldiers set up concrete barriers and dug trenches around Melitopol 

Oleksandr Starukh, the head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, informed this on the air of the We Are Ukraine platform.

He noted that Russian shelling continues and the Russian forces are 50 kilometers from the regional center:

"Russian forces are 50 km from Zaporizhzhia, 10 km from Orikhiv and 5 km from Huliaipole. 62 attacks over the previous day, yesterday they shelled Orikhiv, two people were injured, houses were damaged, but we will restore the houses," said Oleksandr Starukh.

The head of the Ukrainian Joint Staff also stressed that Russian forces are reinforcing their positions in the Zaporizhzhia sector:

"It will not be easy to break the defensive line. They have dug trenches and put concrete barriers around Melitopol," added Oleksandr Starukh.