The LPR army crossed the Seversky Donets river and continues the offensive

"Our forces are already on the opposite bank of the Donets, which already says a lot. We continue to liberate our land. I just arrived from there", - he said on the air of the Rossiya 24 TV channel.

It's worth reminding that earlier on Thursday, the LPR military captured the city of Shchastia and the village of Luhansk. The authorities of the republic note that the Ukrainian military are retreating. The authorities of the DPR stated that the Ukrainian military are suffering significant losses , and even ask to open humanitarian corridors for them.

On Thursday morning, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a special operation in the Donbass. Russian troops entered the territory of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR, whose independence was recognized by Russia the day before. The Ministry of Defense stated that the Russian military is point-wise destroying objects of the military infrastructure of Ukraine. There is no threat to civilians. At the same time, as the Russian president stated, the Kiev authorities will be responsible for the bloodshed in Donbass.