Russia, Ukraine swap hundreds of POWs in war's largest exchange

Moscow and Kiev exchanged 246 prisoners of war each on Saturday, the largest since the outbreak of the war over three years ago, the Russian Defence Ministry announced.

According to a ministry statement, the Russian servicemen are currently receiving psychological and medical care in Belarus, and later will be transported to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation.

The ministry said that additionally, in a gesture of goodwill, the sides also swapped heavily wounded soldiers – 31 Ukrainians in exchange for 15 Russian servicemen.

The ministry commended the mediation efforts of the United Arab Emirates, which played a crucial role in facilitating the prisoner exchange, and expressed gratitude to its government for their significant humanitarian contributions.

Russia takes another village in Ukraine

Russia claimed on Saturday that its forces had captured two more villages in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region over the past day.

According to a Defence Ministry statement, Russian forces now control the settlement of Shevchenko in the Donetsk region.

The ministry reported carrying out a group strike with high-precision land- and sea-based weapons and drones at the testing site of the Ukrainian Sapsan tactical missile system and the Norwegian-made NASAMS air defence systems covering it.

"The objective of the strike was achieved. All designated targets were hit," the ministry said.

Additionally, Russian air defence systems over the past day intercepted 6 JDAM-guided aerial bombs, three HIMARS rockets, and 151 drones.

Ukraine has not yet commented on these claims, with independent verification challenging due to the ongoing conflict, now in its fourth year.

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Source: TRT