Pokrovsk

The Ukrainian troops have cleared - to the last Russian - the area around Kucherive Yar: the area south of it is in the process of being cleared.

A Russian blogger reports that Russia’s 5th Rifle Brigade entered Novoekonomichne and said that they captured it when they had not. Because of this, Ukrainian troops are fighting in Myrne, risking the logistics and encirclement of other Russian units. The 425th Skala Regiment is a ‘regiment’ by its official designation. Actually, it comprises six infantry battalions (which is making it a bigger formation that many of ZSU’s brigades), some of which are being detached to conduct operations in different locations. They are reported to be taking part in operations near Myrne along with a battalion of the 4th “Rubizh” NG brigade. The 38th Marine Brigade was not mentioned but they had recently been reported to be counter attacking in this area. This is a drone strike on Ukrainian troops 1,000 meters south of Myrne.

A Ukrainian airstrike hit Myroliubivka, and another airstrike hit a Rubicon team around Novotoretske. The Russians are pounding the Pokrovsk cauldron with airstrikes, artillery, and rockets.

Ukraine’s logistical routes are under severe pressure. The route traveling through Rodynske (in red) was not only attacked by Russian drones but Russian infiltrators, as well. That route isn’t currently being used. Dirt roads and a couple of paved roads are still used but the attrition rate on vehicles is high.

Russians took two weeks to move 25 km from Selydrove to infiltrate Pokrovsk. Ten of those days were spent moving 5 km from Pishchane to Zakhysnykiv Ukraiiny street (highway E50) in Pokrovsk. They were sustained by food and water with drone drops. They didn’t encounter Ukrainian infantry but many were killed by drones. DeepState said that 120 of 150 infiltrators were killed before they reached Pokrovsk. A prisoner said that of 50 people, only eight made it to Pokrovsk. That fact that even that many made it into Pokrovsk was because of the vegetation of summer. In winter, it would be harder for both sides to move or even sit in a position and survive the enemy drones. As strong as the drone defenses were, if they get past the kill zone there is little to stop them. Sometimes the Ukrainian drone teams themselves engaged the Russians with rifle fire. In this case, the 25th Brigade and 425th Regiment cleared the city of Russians.

A Ukrainian brigade didn’t have enough troops to cover all the approaches to Pokrovsk and failed to tell their superiors (even if: who said the ‘General of Fantastic News’ would have ever listened?). The Russians that made it into Jubilee Park at the southern edge of the city moved through woods and treelines. After resting a couple days and being resupplied by drones they split up and moved into houses just north of the park. At night, at least on a couple of occasions, they would conduct ambushes and place mines. A pickup truck was ambushed, killing one Ukrainian soldier and wounding another. Mines were placed on a road but the Ukrainians saw and detonated them.

The 82nd Airborne Assault Brigade is primarily deployed near Poltavka but they sent some personnel to clear out the village of Petrivka that has maybe 20 houses and is located 3500 meters north of Zolotyi Kolodiaz. The Russians dug positions in nearby woods and the Ukrainian soldiers threw backpacks full of explosives into them. Two Russians were killed and six were captured.

Ukraine pushed the Russians out of Kucheriv Yar (lightly shaded area) and the Russians gathered in a small wooded area south of the town (darkly shaded area). Ukraine bombarded them periodically and let them sit there without supplies for a couple of days before clearing them out and capturing some prisoners.

The 93rd Brigade used tanks to clear buildings of Russian soldiers.

18 km south of Pokrovsk, a new video of the road between Ukrainka and Yasenove revealed the destruction of a BTR and 20 unarmored vehicles.

Like so many other coal mines, the Dobropillia mine is flooding because the water isn’t being pumped out. The flooding of so many mines in the Donbas has long term environmental impacts.

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The 425th Skala Assault Regiment was tasked with pushing the Russians back from the Novopavlikva sector. They coordinated the operation with the 42nd Brigade that was defending the sector and would remain after the mission was completed over several days. They began by clearing a treeline that was directly on the border of the Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Then an engineering vehicle cleared the route for vehicular travel behind friendly lines. During these preparatory tasks they had to repel attacks from two Russian brigades and a regiment and some of the attackers were captured. The Russians could not retreat because barrier troops behind them would kill them.

At night, vehicles would bring in reinforcements and evacuate wounded. Ukrainian drones destroyed an MT-LB 10 km from the front lines near the wrecks of two other armored vehicles and Russians intercepted several Ukrainian drones in the sector. A Bradley and M113 traveled together before splitting up and hitting two different sections of the front line, where the infantry dismounted and cleared the territory up to the Kotliarivka-Troitske road. Eliminating the attacking Russians and clearing a 3 km deep area disrupted Russian operations and provided Novopavlivka more breathing room.

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Komar

Ukraine took Zelenyi Hai but may withdraw because of the constant bombing. Ukraine controls most of Andriivka-Klevtsove but there may still be a small Russian presence in the northeast of the village. After drone attacks, Ukraine entered Tolstoi but had to withdraw to the woodlines to the west. The Russians entered Oleksandrohrad and were destroyed the next day but one Ukrainian was killed in the operation. Ukraine has the center and west of Voskresenka and the Russians are trying to push them out. Maliivka is just flat ground. Russia moved 4 km to capture Vorone but they are under a lot of pressure there. The sector is still unstable but if Ukraine increases its ability to stabilize the sector will increase.

18 Russian bombs hit in and around Novoselivka.

Regarding defensive structures, barbed wire is not a problem for Russia but anti-tank ditches are. The Russians expend drones on them to partially fill the ditches in and make it easier to cross. Trenches with bunkers in the middle of the field only helps Russians. The best defenses are well-built dugouts in trees.

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Zaporizhzhia

Russia advanced less than a kilometer to the north and northeast of Kamianske. Ukraine attacked Stepove but no further details were reported.

There are reports that numerous Russians in the 108th Air Assault Regiment near Mali Shcherbaky and the 70th Motor Rifle Regiment near Bilohiria are abandoning their positions or committing suicide due to brutal leadership (we’ve lost the count of all the Russian videos showing savages called ‘officers’ torturing their own troops) and enemy drones.

A Russian reconnaissance drone carrying two FPV drones was shot down by the 118th Mechanized Brigade.

The Ukrainian 27th NG Pechersk Brigade attacked an S-300 air defense unit.

The Ukrainian 65th Brigade attacked a fuel train southwest of Tokmak and 30 km south of the front lines. Repair of the tracks would only take a day but removing the destroyed equipment will take longer.

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(…to be continued…)

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This text is published with the permission of the author. First published here.

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