Thirty-five members of illegal armed groups, many of whom are said to be mercenaries sent to Ukraine by Chechen leader Razman Kadyrov, were taken prisoner during the fighting in east Ukraine on Sunday, July 20, Ukrainian Defense Minister Valeriy Heletei has said.

"Ukrainian military have captured 35 Russian mercenaries, most of whom are Kadyrov's men, over the last 24 hours," he wrote on his page on Facebook early on Monday.

Heletei said that on Sunday evening there were active clashes near Lysychansk, Rubizhne, Severodonetsk and in the suburbs of Luhansk, "during which the militants suffered heavy losses."

"In particular, terrorists in panic tried to break out of Lysychansk encircled by a convoy of armored vehicles, but came under fire from units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. As a result, three units of armor of the terrorists are now burning on the battlefield. The remaining mercenaries fled and returned to the blockaded town," he said.

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