Ukrainian defenders retreat from Soledar - AFU spokesman

Serhiy Cherevatyi shared the information in a comment for journalists, BBC Ukraine reports.

"In order to save the lives of the personnel, the Defense Forces withdrew from Soledar and consolidated their positions on the previously prepared defense lines. The defenders of Soledar performed a real feat despite the enemy's 3 to 5 times superiority and strongly held their positions. They inflicted huge personnel losses on the enemy, comparable to the aggressor's losses in the 2 Chechen wars," said the spokesman for the eastern group of the Armed Forces.

Volodymyr Nazarenko, a fighter with the Legion of Freedom of the National Guard, said that Soledar was several square kilometers of scorched land and a burnt town. Russia has lost a huge number of its military there.

• On January 20, the UN sent the first batch of humanitarian aid to the town, with 3 trucks delivering food, water, hygiene products and medicines.