Ukraine says it hit hotel where members of Russian band Wagner met

A Ukrainian rocket attack on a hotel in the east of the country killed members of the Wagner Group, a Russian paramilitary force whose leader has close ties to President Vladimir V Putin, Ukrainian regional military authorities said.

Exiled head of Ukrainian regional administration in Lugansk province Serhiy Haidai said in a post on messaging app Telegram that "many" members of Wagner's force had been killed in Sunday's attack in the town of Kadiivka. He posted a grainy photograph, taken at night, of a courtyard surrounded on three sides by a two-story building, which appeared to have been shattered by an explosion. There was a crater in the center of the courtyard.

Mr. Haidai's claim could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate comment or confirmation from the Wagner Group. Telegram channels linked to the Wagner Group were silent, with no real mention of the strike.

Russian state news agency Tass reported in a Telegram article that a HIMARS rocket destroyed a hotel near the central market but did not mentioned the Wagner group. Using the city's former Soviet name, Stakhanov, in the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic, the report cited the mayor's office and said rescuers were clearing the rubble. He did not give details of the victims or say who was staying at the hotel.

There was no independent confirmation that Wagner's forces were in the hotel, but such a strike would fit a pattern of attacks by Ukrainian forces on critical points of military infrastructure or concentrations of troops in territory occupied by Russian forces.

Over the weekend, Ukraine struck a church in the occupied town of Melitopol, southern Ukraine, which Russian troops were using as a base.

In recent months, Ukraine has made use of longer-range weapons, such as HIMARS, a US-provided system capable of locate targets behind Russian lines. The strikes were part of a Ukrainian-led campaign that began in August and culminated in the recapture of the city of Kherson on the west bank of the Dnipro. Recent attacks suggest Ukraine may be taking a similar approach in hopes of advancing on Russian positions east of the river. logistical points for the next few weeks "to set up the conditions for the decisive phase of the campaign," retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges told CNN on Monday.

The Wagner Group, led by businessman Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, played a pivotal role in the Russian attempt to storm the town of Bakhmut in Donetsk province, bordering Luhansk. The fighting, fought for months amid heavy casualties on both sides, was among the most brutal since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February.

Military experts say capturing Bakhmut would have limited strategic value for Moscow, but would serve a political purpose given that Russia last captured a major Ukrainian city over the summer and since September has suffered a series of battlefield casualties in the northeast and south of the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says the Kyiv's goal is to reclaim all of the territory seized by Russia since 2014. Its campaign in the south and east has been slowed in recent weeks at the start of winter, although that has not changed the rhythm of longer range attacks.

The rhythm of attacks Ground conditions could accelerate when the ground freezes, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said.

"We saw rain and very difficult for attacks from any side because the ground is wet and wheeled vehicles can hardly pass," he told reporters in the city of Odessa...