3 Tu-160 strategic bombers are airborne from Engels-2 Airbase, Saratov Oblast, redeploying to Ukrainka Airbase, Amur Oblast. They will be equipped with Kh-101 cruise missiles and should return to Engels-2 some time next week.

Currently, there is the lowest possible number of strategic bombers near Ukraine, with just 1 Tu-160 and 1 Tu-95MS, both currently being used for training purposes.

Also, there are still signs pointing towards a large-scale, combined missile and drone attack taking place soon. Nothing will happen today, but there is an increased threat for this weekend.

* forgot to mention, any attack would not include Kh-101 cruise missiles launched from strategic bombers.

Dude's just accepted the "X city holds guy" title at this point.

You know what, maybe WarMonitor has some intel we don't have. He always seems to make these posts right before the city falls.

Someone inform polymarket betters ASAP

It turns out that the target of the Ukrainian HIMARS attack on Donetsk yesterday was a complex of storage warehouses for Russian Geran-2 drones at Donetsk International Airport. FP-2 drones were also used, which are seen striking the warehouses in this video.

As many as 1,200 drones were stored here, which resulted in massive secondary detonations. The number of destroyed drones is unknown.

Russian forces have captured the village of Uspenivka, Hulyaipole direction, Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

Pre-war population: ~1,420.
Total land area: ~5.42 km².

Russian forces have captured the village of Solodke, Hulyaipole direction, Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

Pre-war population: ~139.
Total land area: ~1.05 km².

In the Vovchansk direction, Russian forces have continued their offensive on Vovchansk, making new progress in five different areas.

In the west, increased Ukrainian resistance has slowed Russian progress in the forests to a crawl. Russian forces are gradually advancing through the forests, seizing positions one after another, and have managed to enter the outskirts of Prylipka from the east. They also made additional incremental advances northwest of the village of Lyman, while other forces were able to enter the residential part of Synelnykove.

To the east, Russian forces continued pushing through southern Vovchansk and have advanced from the three-story buildings to the small industrial zone on the southern edge of the city, capturing most of it. They also continued pushing east through the low-rise residential areas, where they reached the highway and destroyed bridge over the Vovcha River, and advanced beyond the highway into the denser residential areas of southern Vovchansk.

As a result of these Russian advances, the remaining Ukrainian units stationed in northern Vovchansk withdrew behind the river to prevent being cut off from the rear, officially ending the 18-month-long battles for this part of the city. The withdrawals took place from two small salients of flattened houses in the southeast and east.

Further east, over the past ten days Russian forces have been slowly pushing through the forests east of Tykhe, expanding a buffer zone around the newly recaptured village. They advanced further through the large forest in the north and captured treeline positions to the south. They also established control over some outlying houses of Vovchanski Khutory on the northern bank of the Vovcha River, as well as a nearby forest.

+ ~5.97 km² in favour of Russia.

As everyone focuses on the final battles taking place for Pokrovsk, think I should highlight the sheer intensity of battles ongoing in Rodynske right now, just north of Pokrovsk.

Ukrainian forces who infiltrated the city around six days ago have entrenched and consolidated in a number of houses and high-rise buildings, and the Russians are doing everything to push them back. Both sides are burning each other's positions to the ground and reducing buildings to rubble in order to win this battle, which is by far the most intense fighting for Rodynske so far.

Despite some earlier Russian progress against this fortified area, Ukrainian forces have since managed to push back, with some positions changing hands multiple times. Russian FAB glide-bombs are striking Ukrainian forward deployment points west of the city, while Ukrainian FPV drones, artillery, and glide-bombs continue to cover Russian positions within Rodynske.

The nature of this fighting makes me suspect elite Ukrainian unit(s) are involved in this battle, but this is just a gut feeling for me as there is no evidence to back this up yet.

It seems Ukraine has tried to break through Russian lines here and force them to withdraw from their pincer northwest of Myrnohrad in order to relieve the encircled Ukrainian units, but have since been bogged down due to fierce Russian resistance, while the Russians are taking no chances and are trying to expel them from the city once again.

In the Velykyi Burluk direction, Russian forces continued to advance and have made substantial progress in the direction of the Verkhnya Dvurichkova River.

In the southeast, after capturing the rest of Kamyanka, Russian forces expanded their zone of control west and northwest of the settlement, capturing new positions in the forests and nearby treelines. They also established control over a new forest further southwest.

To the north, the Russians continued pushing south from the international border. They reached the gulley north of Dvorichanske, capturing the forests and treelines there, while other assault groups began bypassing the village from the west, moving down the forested gulley and the treelines west of it.

To the northwest, Russian forces advanced on a wide front from Ambarne to the Odradne area. They captured new treeline positions on the tactical heights southeast of Ambarne in the direction of the Verkhnya Dvurichkova River, and pushed further south down the gulley towards Obukhivka.

+ ~19.21 km² in favour of Russia.

Russian forces have captured the village of Lysivka, Pokrovsk direction, Donetsk Oblast.

Pre-war population: ~799.
Total land area: ~2.71 km².

The battles for this village lasted for approximately 13 months.

In the Kupyansk direction, both Russian and Ukrainian forces have advanced, pushing in different areas outside Kupyansk.

In the north, Russian forces recaptured positions which were previously in the grey zone after a group of Ukrainian soldiers landed in a forest. They also pushed the Ukrainians out of positions in the forests east of Kindrashivka. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces attempted to infiltrate Kindrashivka from the west, where a grey zone had now formed due to a lack of Russian consolidation there.

To the south, over the last few weeks, Ukrainian forces managed to re-establish control over positions in the forested areas northwest and north of Moskovka. They have since advanced down the forested gulley northeast of Moskovka, and attempted to enter northern Kupyansk from here. They also continued attempts at capturing positions in Radkivka, which is now entirely in the grey zone. Fighting is ongoing, with no clear consolidation yet.

In the south, at some point recently, the Ukrainians cleared the forests south of Sobolivka of the remaining Russian DRGs, fully securing the areas north of the highway. Sobolivka itself remains entirely in the grey zone, with both sides entering and clashing in the village.

+ ~3.75 km² in favour of Ukraine.
+ ~1.29 km² in favour of Russia.

This is what seems to be the Russian plan in Zaporozhye oblast - to continue cascading the heavily entrenched Ukrainians by outmaneuvering them from the northeast time and time again, from Gulyaypole to the next important supply hub of Omelnyk, supported by the seizure of Pokrovskoye, before a final push to Orekhov.

All the defences here were built east to west. Some new ones are being constructed facing north to south, but I'm not confident they will hold for long due to manpower shortages.

In the Borova direction, Russian forces launched a series of attacks towards the Oskil River and have made important progress.

In the south, Russian advanced back through eastern Borivska Andriivka and have recaptured the centre of the village, as well as the treeline to the southeast. They also advanced along the treelines on the tactical heights to the north, while other assault groups began a push along the heights towards Novoplatonivka.

To the north, Russian forces advanced further along the tactical heights southeast of Nova Kruhlyakivka, capturing new trench strongholds and positions in the adjacent treelines. They also advanced along the treelines north of the reservoirs towards Nova Kruhlyakivka from the east.

+ ~8.70 km² in favour of Russia.

On the northwestern flank of Lyman and in the Borova direction, both Russian and Ukrainian forces have advanced, with Russian forces making new progress in several different areas.

In the north, the Russians began a new series of attacks aimed at fully securing the eastern bank of the Nitrius River. After withdrawing from the centre and part of eastern Ridkodub, they began attacking west again, capturing the eastern houses and the agricultural buildings, and reaching the centre of the village again. Russian soldiers have not secured the local school due to its proneness to Ukrainian glide-bomb strikes, leaving it in the grey zone. Additionally, they were able to recapture the northeastern part of Karpivka, as well as the surrounding positions in the forest plantations.

To the southwest, Russian forces continued their attacks through the Sviati Hory National Park. They advanced further south to the railway line, capturing two train stations and reaching the northwestern outskirts of Yarova. They also marginally advanced to the west towards Sosnove.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces consolidated in the southeastern part of Yarova and pushed the Russians out of the forests to the northeast. In turn, Russian forces have begun attacking towards northern Yarova from the forests southwest of Novoselivka.

To the east, after being pushed out for a short period of time, Russian forces re-secured a foothold in the northern part of Stavky and began attacks to the centre of the village. They were able to establish control over the local school and surrounding residential streets and are now pushing towards the southern outskirts.

+ ~9.12 km² in favour of Russia.
+ ~3.44 km² in favour of Ukraine.

⚡️🇬🇧🇸🇾Reuters: Britain has officially removed sanctions on Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Interior Minister Anas Khattab, following a parallel decision by the UN Security Council.

These sanctions were originally imposed in 2014, and included travel bans, asset freezes and arms embargoes linked to ties with al-Qaeda and ISIS. The UN cited a lack of current connections as a reason for lifting the measures.

The decision signals a broader shift in Western policy toward Syria, prioritising reconstruction, regional stability and reintegration of Damascus into international frameworks.

@wfwitness

Update from the Pokrovsk direction:

While Myrnohrad is still yet to be physically cut off, movement in and out of the city is not currently happening due to Russian fire control and the activity of DRG units. Russian forces are making progress elsewhere, though.

The main news comes from northeastern Pokrovsk, where after some Ukrainian withdrawals took place, Russian forces were able to physically encircle some Ukrainian formations in the high-rise part of the Dinas District. They captured the small industrial zone on the edge of the city and secured the first street in the village of Rivne. Clearing operations continue in Dinas, with Russian forces capturing several more high-rise buildings.

In eastern Pokrovsk, the Russians captured the last residential areas there and advanced to the neighbouring warehouses and forested areas.

At the bottom of the Myrnohrad pocket, Russian forces finally established full control over Lysivka after around 13 months of battles for the village. They also captured new positions in the treelines and forests to the northwest and began pushing further east, bypassing Sukhyi Yar from the north. Fighting continues in the centre of Sukhyi Yar.

In northeastern Myrnohrad, Russian forces captured several more high-rise buildings and advanced further in the low-rise residential area. They are also attempting to reach the southwestern part of the high-rise district, bombing Ukrainian positions ahead of them with FAB glide-bombs.

In the Myrnohrad pocket bottleneck, Russian DRGs continue to operate in the grey zone. No consolidation has occurred here yet.

In Rodynske, extremely heavy fighting continues. Both sides are attempting to advance, with positions constantly changing hands. Massive amounts of fire power are being concentrated on this area as Ukraine tries to break through to the rear of the northern Russian pincer, while Russia tries to push the Ukrainians back out of Rodynske.

In northern Pokrovsk, Russian forces continue their clearing operations and are fighting for the remaining grey zone. Ukrainian assault groups are complicating their consolidation efforts and preventing them from securing the whole city.

In the Udachne area, the Russians recaptured positions along the road to the eastern part of the Pokrovsk Coal Mine.

Here's a closer up view of the situation in northeastern Pokrovsk, with the encircled Ukrainian units in the Dinas District and the Myrnohrad Pocket.

Iskander on Poltava Oblast