Ukraine Eliminates 500 Russian Soldiers In 24 Hours; Death Toll Surpasses 179,000

Hundreds more of Russia's troops were killed by Ukrainian forces on the battlefield this week.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Ukraine's military eliminated 500 Russian military personnel Tuesday, bringing the Russian death toll to 179,320 since the war began in February last year.

Russia also lost more pieces of military equipment in the conflict Tuesday, including seven tanks, 10 armored personnel vehicles (APVs), 15 artillery systems and nine operational-tactical level unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), according to the Ukrainian military.

So far, Ukraine has destroyed 3,644 Russian tanks, 7,038 APVs, 2,765 artillery systems and 2,332 UAVs during its now-14-month war against Russia.

On Monday, the Ukrainian military reported 670 additional fatalities and at least 26 pieces of military equipment destroyed on the Russian side.

Despite its additional combat losses on the battlefield, Russia continues to attack Ukraine, including one missile strike, 10 airstrikes and 18 shelling attacks from its battalion jet systems Tuesday, according to the latest update of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Russia reportedly shelled the Ukrainian settlements of Kolodyazne, Kamianka, Topoli, Krasne Pershe, Ridkodub, Novomlynsk, Dvorichna, Kindrasivka, Pishchane and Berestov in the Kharkiv region and Novoselivske in the occupied Luhansk region.

The Ukrainian military added that Russian forces continue to carry out defensive actions in the Ukrainian regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson by shelling several settlements there.

Russia is still using medical facilities in its temporarily occupied territories in Ukraine, according to the report.

In the Luhansk region, Russian forces are using the building of the primary medical and sanitary care center in the town of Novopskov and the Kryakivka medical point as their military hospitals.

Meanwhile, the Russian State Duma, the country's lower house of parliament, has moved to tighten the rules against dodging a military draft.

According to one of the measures passed by Russian lawmakers, Russians drafted to fight in Ukraine would be banned from leaving the country, The New York Times reported.

Another amendment aims to establish electronic draft summonses, which would make it more difficult for potential Russian draftees to dodge formal notifications.

However, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's spokesperson, said there were no plans to send more Russian men to the Ukrainian battlefield, despite the parliament's move to amend the conscription system.

In September 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization of 300,000 reservists to augment the Russian troops deployed in Ukraine. Putin's decision was met with protests around the country, pushing tens of thousands of Russian men to flee to escape the draft.