Ukraine Says It Hit Pipeline That Supplies Russian Army

Ukrainian forces hit an important fuel pipeline in the Moscow region that supplies the Russian army, Ukraine's military intelligence said Saturday, as Russia kept up a sustained campaign of massive drone and missile attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. The operation was carried out late Friday, according to a statement on the Telegram messaging channel. The agency, which is known by its acronym HUR, described the strike as a "serious blow" to Russia's military logistics, the AP reports.

HUR said its forces struck the Koltsevoy pipeline, which spans 250 miles and supplies the Russian army with gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel from refineries in Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod and Moscow. The operation, which targeted infrastructure near Ramensky district, destroyed all three fuel lines, HUR said. The pipeline was capable of transporting up to 3 million tons of jet fuel, 2.8 million tons of diesel, and 1.6 million tons of gasoline annually, HUR said. "Our strikes have had more impact than sanctions," said Kyrylo Budanov, the head of HUR, referring to international sanctions on Russia imposed over its all-out war and the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Russia claims a success: Russia's Defense Ministry on Saturday said its forces defeated a team of Ukrainian special forces rushed to the eastern front-line hot spot of Pokrovsk in a bid to stop Russian troops from pushing farther into the city. The ministry later posted videos showing two men it said were Ukrainians who surrendered in the embattled city. The videos show the men sitting in a dark room as they speak of fierce fighting and encirclement by Russian forces. The videos' authenticity could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate public comment from Kyiv on the claims. Russia and Ukraine have presented conflicting accounts of what is happening in Pokrovsk, a key Ukrainian stronghold in the eastern Donetsk region.