Heavy clashes raging along vital Bakhmut rail corridor, Ukrainian military says
Heavy fighting continues in the Bakhmut sector near the railroad there, Illya Yevlash, head of the press service of the Eastern Grouping of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said during the national telethon program on Oct. 5.
“We are trying to push back the enemy and gain a foothold on the lines we have reached,” Yevlash said.
Read also: Russian defenses stronger than West expected, admits UK defense chief
The enemy continues to fire at Ukrainian positions with various types of artillery, both barrel and rocket types. Over the past day, 489 attacks were recorded, including from tanks, mortars, LPG, RPG, and small arms.
Yevlash noted that ten combat engagements took place without success for the Russian troops. He said Ukrainian forces had managed to eliminate 178 enemy soldiers.
Ukrainian counteroffensive — The latest
A new phase of Ukraine’s counter-offensive is continuing, with the main thrust in the southeast, where Ukrainian forces were gradually advancing through minefields and under Russian airstrikes.
Read also: Ukraine has 6-8 weeks of favorable weather for counter-offensive, says White House
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi, responding earlier to criticism of the “slow pace” of the counter-offensive, told U.S. officials that Ukrainian forces were on the verge of a breakthrough in the south, U.S. newspaper the Wall Street Journal reported on Aug. 24, citing an unnamed U.S. official.
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry confirmed the liberation of the village of Robotyne in Zaporizhzhya Oblast by the Ukrainian military on Aug. 28. Ukrainian forces have since been advancing further towards the Novodanylivka-Verbove area in southern Ukraine.
Now Ukrainian forces are moving further towards Novoprokopivka, Ocheretuvate, and have had success near Verbove.
Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, commander of the Tavria operational group in the southern part of the country, confirmed on Sept. 2 that Ukrainian forces had breached the first Russian defense line in Zaporizhzhya Oblast.
Read also: Russia deploys reserves to Zaporizhzhya front, taking heavy losses in fighting – Atesh
Ukrainian forces have also liberated part of the village of Opytne south of the front-line town of Avdiyivka in Donetsk Oblast, now former Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said on Sept. 11.
Ukrainian forces liberated Klishchiyivka near Bakhmut on Sept. 17.
A major breakthrough in the counter-offensive would begin if Ukrainian forces were to liberate Tokmak in Zaporizhzhya Oblast, Tarnavskyi has said.
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