What happened in Ukraine's war around 30 January 2023?

What did the war look like on 30 January 2023? Reports from the preceding days, 28 and 29 January, describe fighting near Bakhmut and attacks on towns far from the main front.

Claims near Bakhmut

On 29 January 2023, forces of the Wagner Group said they had captured the village of Blahodatne, north of Bakhmut. Ukraine rejected the claim and said it had repelled the attack.

Shelling of Kherson

Also on 29 January, Russian forces shelled the city of Kherson. Three people were killed and six others injured. A hospital, a school and a bus station were damaged.

Strikes in Sumy Oblast

On 28 January, the Russian Air Force carried out an airstrike on the city of Seredyna-Buda in Sumy Oblast. A kindergarten was destroyed and nearby residential buildings were damaged. No casualties were reported. Cross-border shelling also damaged the towns of Esman and Shalyhyne.

A disputed claim from Luhansk Oblast

On 28 January, Russia claimed that a Ukrainian HIMARS missile strike on a hospital in Novoaidar, Luhansk Oblast, had killed 14 people and injured 24 others, including patients and medical staff. The claim came from the Russian side.

Taken together, the reports from those two days show a war fought both over contested villages and through strikes on towns and civilian infrastructure, with each side offering its own account of events.