A village near Kharkiv has been retaken from the Russians, according to Ukrainian officials.

Kostiantyn Nemichev, a member of the Azov regiment and an official at the Kharkiv Regional State Administration said that the Ukrainian forces seized the village of Ruska Lozova, which is located immediately north of Kharkiv. The Ukrainians claim to have liberated several towns and villages in the area in recent weeks.

Also read: UK sending experts to probe Russian war crimes in Ukraine

“This is a strategically important settlement located on the Kharkiv-Belgorod highway. It was from this suburb, during the occupation, that the enemy fired at the civilian infrastructure and housing estates of Kharkiv,” Nemichev said.

The Ukrainian military, which stated Friday that the town had been liberated by the assault force of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate, echoed Nemichev’s remarks.

The Russians, on the other hand, can still shell Kharkiv and its environs.

Also read: Russian checkpoint bordering Ukraine shelled, regional governor says

The severity of shelling has decreased, according to Kharkiv regional administration head Oleh Syniehubov. “However, it’s still quite dangerous to be outside in the streets. Unfortunately, we record civilian deaths every day,” he said.

“Kharkiv shellings are chaotic. Usually the residential districts are affected, these are Saltivka, Northern Saltivka, Oleksiivka,” he added, adding that electricity has gone out in numerous districts.

According to Syniehubov, the area around Izium, which is held by the Russians, remains the “hottest” point in the Kharkiv region’s south. Ukrainian forces, he added, were holding their positions.

Also read: United States accuse Russia of fanning separatism in Bosnia amid Ukraine crisis

He stated that evacuations from numerous towns within range of Russian artillery fire, including Barvinkove, were continuing because “as we expect there might be a theater of combat operations there.”

Syniehubov also alleged that a Russian military battalion suspected of crimes in Bucha, a town north of Kyiv, had been redeployed to the Kharkiv region. “It was partially eliminated nearby Izium. With these people taken captive, we will do everything for them to be punished accordingly, or at least to testify about their commanders who gave orders for such atrocities that took place in Bucha.”