Dispatch for July 11

Update on Novofedorivka explosions

We have located the video of the destroyed Su-24 fighter jet and can now confirm the loss of 8 aircraft by the Russian side.

British intelligence also claims destruction of 8 aircrafts (however, they may be citing open sources).

The number of damaged aircrafts is still unknown.

Some Russian media report one military vehicle (presumably a KAMAZ truck) destroyed, one serviceman killed and two more injured as a result of Ukrainian attack of the Chornobayivka airfield.

Situation at the front:

• Kramatorsk axis

The General Staff of Ukraine claims that pro-Russian forces are undertaking offensive actions with the help of rocket artillery and tanks near Sivers`k, Verkhnekam`yanske, Serebryanka and Hrihorivka. Hostilities continue in the vicinity of Ivano-Darivka. 

• Bakhmut-Soledar axis:

Pro-Russian forces have reached the eastern outskirts of Soledar. A video was published with Wagner group members among residential buildings in the vicinity of the Knauf plant. 

Pro-Russian forces are trying to outflank Bakhmut from the south, advancing on the settlements of Vershyna and Dacha.

At 5.30 a.m., on August 11, Russian troops shelled Kharkiv; there were four impacts in total; some of the shells hit the courtyard of a residential building. According to the mayor of the city, Ihor Terekhov, no one was killed or injured, but civilian infrastructure was damaged.

According to the head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military District, Valentyn Reznichenko, on the night of August 10-11, Russian forces shelled four districts of the Dnipropetrovsk region. The Nikopol district was three times fired upon by Grad MLRS, in total 120 rockets landed. In the city of Nikopol, three people were killed, nine injured, a thirteen-year-old among them; dozens of houses were damaged, five apartments were completely destroyed.

Footage surfaced showing Russian Grad MLRS launchers fire from a residential area in Popasna.

A brewery was on fire in Donetsk. A Russian warehouse is believed to have been there, but, apparently, no ammunition, since no one heard a secondary detonation. An ammonia leak was reported with an area of ​​effect up to 2 km. Other sources say that plastic containers and pallets are on fire in an area of ​​600 square meters. Many locals report that they did not smell ammonia, but they did smell burning plastic.

The Ukrainian Military published footage of a commercial drone dropping grenades onto a RLC-MC-A “Valdai” system, but it appears to have dealt no significant damage. This modern system was developed in 2018, specifically to be effective in combating drones, however, its minimum detection range is 300 meters. To effectively protect against drones, these complexes should be placed every 5-6 kilometers, which is very difficult to implement over a large territory.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace stated that three more M270 launchers and a significant amount of rounds will be given to Ukraine. 

Over the last week, Germany transferred 4 more Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft artillery systems to Ukraine. For the moment, 12 such vehicles have been transferred, 18 more are expected. Additionally, 13 armored vehicles were also transferred: three recovery vehicles and 10 HMMWVs.

The Washington Post writes that at least $12.4 trillion of Ukraine’s natural resources are under Russian control. These are deposits of coal, oil, and other valuable minerals, such as lithium.

Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych says that empty flats, which have been abandoned by tenants for a long time, will become a big problem during the heating season.

Izyum councilman Maksym Strelnykov has claimed that about 10,000 Izyum residents want to move to Ukrainian-controlled territory. He stresses that the winter season is already approaching and the heating situation in the city is catastrophic.

Italy has opened criminal proceedings against its citizen who went to fight in Ukraine, because Italian citizens are forbidden to fight on the side of another state.