Drone footage shows devastation in Ukraine’s strategic eastern city of Chasiv Yar as Russians near

By JILL LAWLESS and ILLIA NOVIKOV
Associated Press

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Drone footage exclusively obtained by The Associated Press shows months of Russian artillery pounding have devastated a strategic city in eastern Ukraine. Chasiv Yar is a strategic high ground, and capturing it would set the stage for a potentially broader Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine that Ukrainian officials say could come as early as this month. The footage shows a skeletal ghost town, with few residents left. Apartment blocks are reduced to charred facades, and streets are pockmarked with massive craters. The destruction is reminiscent of what remained of Bakhmut and Avdiivka that Ukraine gave up after months of bombardment.