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Dramatic video shows the moment Ukrainian forces launch a devastating attack on Russian positions in a village in occupied Kursk.
President Zelensky's men are continuing to push forward with their incursion into Russian territory, so far capturing hundreds of square miles of land in a major embarrassment for Moscow's military top brass.
Thousands of troops smashed through border defences in a surprise attack on August 6, and have since claimed more territory in two weeks than Russia has in Ukraine during this entire calendar year.
More than 122,000 people have left the region after authorities ordered mass evacuations, state news agency TASS quoted the emergencies ministry as saying.
Paratroopers have been fighting near the village of Mala Loknya - around eight miles from the border - for several days, with new video now showing their bombardment of Russian hide-outs, which they claim to have carried out with German tanks.
Smoke and flames rise from buildings in the village of Mala Loknya, in Russia's Kursk region
The intense Ukrainian bombardment of the Russian positions was caught on camera
The attack left the buildings - which Ukraine said Putin's troops were using as hide-outs - almost completely destroyed
Kyiv has claimed that their aim in the campaign is to create a buffer zone to prevent further cross-border attacks by Moscow.
Ukraine has also sought to capture as many prisoners of war as possible in order to replenish an 'exchange fund' in the hope that it can help bring soldiers home in future swaps.
Earlier this week, Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, expressed hope about capturing 'a lot' of Russian prisoners in Mala Loknya.
Images of his troops' assault on the settlement have now emerged after they were released by Ukraine's Command of the Airborne Assault Troops.
'The video shows fire being conducted from a BMP 'Marder' during assault operations in the village of Mala Loknya, Sudzhansky district, Kursk region,' it said in a statement.
Germany gifted dozens of Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine last year. Despite their age, they are regarded as some of the toughest fighting vehicles on the battlefield due to their quality, armour, cannons and weight.
Polissya paratroopers used the tanks to launch a 'powerful strike' on 'well-equipped firing points and combat positions of the Russian forces,' the statement went on.
'The enemy suffered significant losses in personnel, equipment, and other material resources,' it said.
A Ukrainian soldier stands in front of a Marder infantry fighting vehicle after they were gifted to Kyiv last year
It comes after a bridge along the same river was destroyed in an attack on Friday, with Ukraine claiming responsibility
Meanwhile, hundreds of miles southeast in Russia's Rostov region, authorities struggled Tuesday to put out a massive fire in the southern Rostov region for a third consecutive day after an oil depot was hit by Ukrainian drones.
The fire at the depot in the town of Proletarsk burned across an area of a hectare (2 1/2 acres), according to Russian state news agencies.
There are 500 firefighters involved in the operation, and 41 of them already have been hospitalized with injuries, according to the Russian state-owned news agency TASS, citing local officials.
Ukraine's Army General Staff claimed responsibility Sunday for attacking the oil depot, which was used to supply the needs of Russia's army, calling it a measure 'to undermine the military and economic potential of the Russian Federation.'
In recent days, Ukrainian forces have struck three key bridges on the Seym River, which have been crucial to Putin's army for troop transfers.
While successes in the Kursk region have been a major morale boost for Ukraine, Kyiv's forces face a bleak situation in the Donbas region.
Local residents clear broken glass from their balconies after a Russian bombardment of a residential neighbourhood in Pokrovsk, Donetsk region, on August 20
Russia has been bearing down on the city of Pokrovsk, forcing Ukrainian troops to pull back and civilians to be evacuated.
The relentless six-month slog across Ukraine's Donetsk region following the capture of Avdiivka has cost Ukraine heavily in troops and armor.
Ukrainian defenders have no choice but to pull back from positions blown to pieces by Russian artillery, missiles and bombs.
Pokrovsk is one of Ukraine's main defensive strongholds and a key logistics hub in the Donetsk region.
Its capture would compromise Ukraine's defensive abilities and supply routes and would bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the entire Donetsk region.
Russia wants control of all parts of Donetsk and neighboring Luhansk, which together make up the Donbas industrial region.
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