Russia seizes two more settlements in Zaporizhia region, Ukraine strikes Russian oil refinery

Russia said on Sunday that its armed forces had gained control over two more settlements in the Zaporizhia region, while Ukraine, on the same day, claimed striking a Russian oil refinery.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said in its latest report that over the past 24 hours, the Russian forces continued to advance deep into the Ukrainian defenses, gaining control of two more settlements in the Zaporizhia region.

Russia's tactical aviation, missile troops, and artillery units targeted energy facilities that support Ukrainian military enterprises, drone assembly workshops, and 141 areas used by Ukrainian troops and foreign mercenaries, the ministry said.

The Russian air defense forces also intercepted 4 U.S.-made HIMARS rockets, 2 Neptune cruise missiles, and 197 fixed-wing drones, it added.

Also on Sunday, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said its defense forces attacked the Kuibyshev Refinery in the Samara Region of southwestern Russia, which is one of the main producers of advanced fuels for Russian military jet engines. The strike resulted in explosions and fires.

Ukraine also confirmed a previous attack on an oil refinery in the Russian city of Ryazan, saying that both the crude oil distillation unit and storage tanks at the facility were damaged.

The U.S. dollar increased in late trading on Thursday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, went up 0.52 percent to 99.746 at 3 p.m. (1900 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro declined to 1.1521 dollars from 1.1569 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound fell to 1.3356 dollars from 1.3407 dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 159.31 Japanese yen, higher than 158.89 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar rose to 0.7845 Swiss francs from 0.7799 Swiss francs, and it climbed to 1.3626 Canadian dollars from 1.3587 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar added to 9.3433 Swedish kronor from 9.2301 Swedish kronor.