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Russian forces liberate 32 communities in July 2026 — TASS estimates

According to Russian sources, Russian forces took control of 32 communities in July, with most in the Kharkov Region and Donetsk People's Republic. Battlegroup North reportedly secured the most settlements, while Battlegroup Center liberated Belitskoye in the DPR.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 3 articles Version 1 Coverage Jul 23 – Aug 3, 2026 Published Aug 14

Overview

Russian forces took control of 32 communities in July, according to estimates reported by TASS. The majority of these communities were located in the Kharkov Region and the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), with 22 settlements liberated there, accounting for more than 68 percent of the monthly total. Battlegroup North was reported to have secured the highest number of communities (ten), followed by Battlegroup Center with eight, Battlegroup West with six, Battlegroup East with five, and Battlegroup South with three.

Battlegroup Center Liberates Belitskoye

The Russian Defense Ministry stated that Battlegroup Center liberated Belitskoye in the DPR. The operation, completed on July 22, involved active offensive actions by assault units and armored vehicles. The town is now under Russian control, and efforts are underway to search for and eliminate Ukrainian soldiers still hiding in basements, according to the ministry.

Expert Assessment of July Gains

Military expert Andrey Marochko, speaking on his VKontakte page, said that Russian fighters took control of almost 600 square kilometers of territory in July, 200 square kilometers more than in June. According to Marochko, 32 settlements came under Russian control over the month, with 12 in the Kharkov Region and 11 in the Donetsk People's Republic. He highlighted that Battlegroup North liberated the most settlements — 11 — achieving the best results in liberating territories during that period.

Discrepancies in Reported Figures

While both TASS estimates and Marochko's assessment agree on the total number of communities taken (32), there are differences in the breakdown. TASS attributes 10 settlements to Battlegroup North, whereas Marochko credits the group with 11. Additionally, TASS reports 22 settlements in the Kharkov Region and DPR combined, while Marochko lists 12 and 11 for those regions respectively. The reasons for these discrepancies are not specified in the available information.

How this outlet told it

TASS — English as of Jul 31, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC

Framing: Russian military gains in July — Informative

Facts Included:

Russian forces took control of 32 communities in July
Majority of communities were in the Kharkov Region and the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR)
Battlegroup North secured the highest number of communities (10)
Liberation of the city of Konstantinovka in the DPR by units of Battlegroup East
Capture of Belitskoye by Battlegroup Center

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of Aug 3, 2026, 3:00 PM UTC

Framing: Russian military gains in territory and settlements — Informative

Facts Included:

Russian fighters took control of almost 600 square kilometers of territory in July
200 square kilometers more than in June
32 settlements came under control of Russian forces over the month
Most settlements were in the Kharkov Region (12) and the Donetsk People's Republic (11)
Battlegroup North liberated the most settlements (11)

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of Jul 23, 2026, 9:30 AM UTC

Framing: Liberation of Belitskoye — Informative

Facts Included:

Battlegroup Center has liberated Belitskoye in the DPR
Russian Defense Ministry statement on the liberation
Details of the operation (assault units, armored vehicles)
Control of the town and measures to search for and eliminate Ukrainian soldiers

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What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimRussian forces took control of 32 communities in July.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jul 31, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC
ClaimThe majority of communities taken control of by Russian forces were located in the Kharkov Region and the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR).	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jul 31, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC
ClaimBattlegroup North secured the highest number of communities, with 10 communities liberated.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jul 31, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC
ClaimBattlegroup North liberated 11 settlements, the most among all battlegroups.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusContested via TASS — English as of Aug 3, 2026, 3:00 PM UTC
ClaimRussian fighters took control of almost 600 square kilometers of territory in July, 200 square kilometers more than in June.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Aug 3, 2026, 3:00 PM UTC
ClaimThe liberation of the city of Konstantinovka in the DPR was achieved by units of Battlegroup East.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jul 31, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC
ClaimBattlegroup Center captured Belitskoye in the DPR.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jul 31, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC
ClaimBattlegroup Center liberated Belitskoye in the DPR, with the operation completed on July 22.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jul 23, 2026, 9:30 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 outlet · 3 articles consulted: TASS — English 8 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-14