Moscow claims 600 Ukrainian forces killed, HIMARS systems destroyed

The Russian military said it has killed nearly 600 Ukrainian soldiers and allied forces through recent air and artillery strikes in the southern Kherson region and nearby Dnipropetrovsk.

"Near the village of Bilohirka in the Kherson region, airstrikes and artillery fire hit the temporary location of the 46th Ukrainian Air Assault Brigade," Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Saturday.

More than 400 Ukrainian troops were killed in the attack on the makeshift base, he said.

In addition, more than 70 other soldiers were killed and 150 wounded by missile attacks elsewhere on the Kherson front, he said.

More than 80 "foreign mercenaries" had died in rocket attacks in the Dnipropetrovsk region, he added.

Konashenkov also reported the destruction of several Ukrainian artillery systems in the past day in the Kharkiv region, including a U.S.-supplied HIMARS advanced multiple-rocket launcher.

Moscow has reported the destruction of these weapons systems several times in the past, only for Kiev and Washington to issue denials.

Konashenkov's military and casualty figures cannot be independently verified.