Ukraine Keeps Liberated Areas A Secret To 'Prevent New Enemy Artillery, Airstrikes'

The Ukrainian government is keeping the names of villages liberated from Russian occupation a secret as part of an effort to prevent them from being targeted by new artillery strikes, according to an official.

Natalie Humeniuk, Head of the United Coordinating Press Center of the Operational Command "South," on Thursday added that they will only reveal the names of liberated villages when the Armed Forces of Ukraine has fully cleared them of Russian military personnel.

"We are trying to prevent new enemy artillery and airstrikes. Only after the complete liberation of populated areas, fully clearing the occupiers out of them, and after our troops have advanced enough to guarantee the safety of civilians, will we announce the names of the liberated settlements," Humeniuk was quoted as saying by Media Center Ukraine.

There are varying reports about the number of villages that have been successfully liberated by the Ukrainian army during its recently-launched counteroffensive operations. On Monday, an unnamed Ukrainian military source told CNN that Ukrainian troops have reclaimed four villages in Kherson Oblast from Russian occupation. The villages are Nova Dmytrivka, Arkhanhel's'ke, Tomyna Balka and Pravdyne.

However, a separate military source told The New Voice of Ukraine that only Pravdyne has been liberated from Russian forces and that Novo Dmytrivka and Tomyna Balka remain contested. The source also noted that the Ukrainian army would still need to drive off Russian garrisons stationed in nearby Stanislav and Shyroka Balka before it can fully secure Tomyna Balka.

In early August, it was reported that the Ukrainian army's 93rd Mechanized Brigade had pushed Russian forces out of the village of Mazanivka in the region of Donbas, according to Forbes.

Despite the varying reports about liberated villages in Ukraine, many accounts do point to Ukraine's successful attempts at advancing in Kherson and pushing back Russian forces on the frontline.

"Ukrainian formations have pushed the front line back some distance in places, exploiting relatively thinly held Russian defenses," the British Ministry of Defense noted in an intelligence update published Wednesday.

The Ukrainian army also targeted three key bridges in the Kherson region that the Russian troops used to send supplies to soldiers located across the Dnipro river.