'Almost wiped off the face of the earth'. Defenders show what Toretsk looks like today – video

The frontline town of Toretsk in Donetsk Oblast has been nearly wiped out due to Russian airstrikes and artillery fire, as shown in a video released by the 42nd Prince Roman the Great Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook.

"The town on the right bank of the Kryvyi Torets River (which is part of the vast basin of the Siverskyi Donets). The city that has almost been erased from the face of the earth by guided aerial bombs and artillery," the military wrote.

As of 2014, Toretsk had a population of around 70,000 people. By December 2024, only 1,500 residents, who refuse to evacuate, remain.

"Such is the current population of Toretsk, of which almost nothing remains after the arrival of the 'liberators,'" the military stated.

On November 1, Russian forces claimed to have captured Toretsk and Chasiv Yar. A spokesperson for the Armed Forces of Ukraine refuted this claim.

On November 14, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated that Russia continues to "level" Toretsk. He noted that the "false moral equivalence" must end.