Russian forces have carried out 48 airstrikes in Kharkiv, Donetsk over past 24 hours: Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine

Russian forces have carried out 48 airstrikes in Ukraine’s Kharkiv and Donetsk regions in the last 24 hours, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said Monday.

Sharing information on the war between Ukraine and Russia, ministry spokesman Oleksandr Motuzianyk said at a press conference in the capital Kyiv that the Russian military continues to attack Ukraine and the deployment of Russian troops is currently focused in the direction of the city of Slovyansk in Donetsk.

Motuzianyk said that in the past 24 hours, five airstrikes were also carried out against elements in the Mykolaiv and Odessa regions.

Russian forces continue to attack infrastructure and areas inhabited by civilians in Ukraine, he said.

"Russia continues its operation to advance in eastern Ukraine. Their aim is to achieve full control over the Donetsk, Luhansk and Kherson regions and to provide a land corridor from the temporarily occupied Crimea," he added.

At least 3,381 civilians have been killed and 3,680 others injured in Ukraine since the war with Russia began on Feb. 24, according to UN estimates. The true toll is feared to be much higher.

More than 5.8 million people have fled to other countries, with some 7.7 million people internally displaced, according to the UN refugee agency.