Russia Has Lost More Than 11,000 Troops Since Start Of Invasion, Ukraine Claims

In an update of losses suffered by the Russian army over the past 11 days Ukraine's military command also claimed that 2,000 units of weapons and equipment had been either seized, destroyed or abandoned, including hundreds of tanks and other armoured vehicles, and dozens of aircraft.

The new estimate comes a day after Ukraine's military officials said that the number of Russian soldiers killed had reached the 10,000 mark, saying in a statement: 'Russia has not suffered so many casualties during the fighting in any of its armed conflicts since its inception,' per The Independent.

The figures provided by Ukraine have not been independently confirmed, and there has been some skepticism as to whether the numbers may be inflated, however earlier this week at least two western military officials said they believed Ukraine's estimates of Russian casualties to be largely accurate.

The number of Ukrainian soldiers killed in battle is currently unknown, however in an update provided last week, the United Nations warned that hundreds of civilians had died during the first week of the invasion as Russia ramped up its attacks on cities.

Residential neighbourhoods in Kharkiv, Mariupol, Chernihiv, Sumy and elsewhere have come under sustained shelling and missile attacks as Russia's bombardment escalates, leaving civilians to hide in underground bomb shelters for days.

As well as suffering seemingly unprecedented human loss, Russia has reportedly also lost significant amounts of equipment. As of 12 hours ago, independently confirmed losses of military vehicles stood at 725, including 107 tanks, with 10 airplanes and 10 helicopters confirmed to have been downed. Ukraine claims it has destroyed more than 80 Russian planes and helicopters.

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