ISTANBUL

Ukrainian forces withdrew from several positions near the border village of Hrabovske in the country’s northeastern Sumy region, state media reported on Sunday.

Citing the Main Directorate of Communications of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, state news agency Ukrinform reported that Russian forces crossed into the Sumy region near the village of Hrabovske, due to which Ukrainian troops withdrew from several nearby positions.

“As a result of the enemy’s rapid advance, Ukrainian Defense Forces units withdrew from several positions in the Hrabovske area,” the directorate said, adding that units of the Joint Forces Task Force are taking “stabilization measures.”

It claimed that Russian troops entered the village and took away more than 50 people into Russia.

Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets also reaffirmed the claim in a later statement on Telegram, saying he asked his Russian counterpart Tatyana Moskalkova to provide information on the issue, and that he also sent a letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Russian authorities have not commented on the claims.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's Joint Forces Task Force wrote on US social media company Facebook that clashes are currently taking place in the border village of Hrabovske.