Hello, this is Yuliia Taradiuk reporting from Ukraine on day 1,405 of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Today’s top story:
Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to control the northern part of Pokrovsk, while the situation in Myrnohrad “remains difficult,” the 7th Rapid Response Corps said on Dec. 29.
Ukraine’s 7th Rapid Response Corps said that the Russian army has been trying to break through Ukrainian defenses in Pokrovsk and has intensified operations west of the city, but has been stopped by Ukrainian troops.
Near Myrnohrad, the situation “remains difficult,” the 7th Rapid Response Corps said. Units of Ukraine’s Air Assault Forces and Marine Corps have been deployed there, and the army is reinforcing its forces to counter pressure from the northeast and south.
The 7th Rapid Response Corps said Russian forces carried out “demonstrative propaganda actions” on Myrnohrad’s southern outskirts aimed primarily at a domestic Russian audience, with little tactical military significance.
On Dec. 28 Ukrainian and Russian troops published conflicting claim and videos about who controls Myrnohrad.
Ukraine’s Armed Forces issued a statement on Dec. 28, alleging they continue to hold key positions in Myrnohrad and the Air Assault Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine released a video of ongoing combat operations there.
Meanwhile, Russian state-controlled media circulated videos online that appeared to show Russian soldiers raising flags in several of the town’s destroyed neighborhoods.
Pokrovsk, a key fortress city in Donetsk Oblast, has been one of the most fiercely contested areas of the front line, with Ukrainian forces holding off a major Russian assault for the past year. Myrnohrad is a satellite town of Pokrovsk, located less than 3 kilometers (2 miles) away.
Ukraine convicted two Russian soldiers in absentia for torturing civilians in occupation
Last updated 6:15 p.m. Kyiv time.
A court in Mykolaiv Oblast has convicted two Russian soldiers in absentia for torturing civilians, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) reported on Nov. 29.
After Russia launched its full-scale invasion, parts of Mykolaiv Oblast were occupied by the Russian military. The village of Novopetrivka was occupied by Russians for almost eight months in 2022.
According to HUR, three Russian officers, who committed war crimes against the civilians of Novopetrivka village, Mykolaiv Oblast, were identified.
Araltan Manzhiev, Konstantin Makin, and Viktor Klimienko deprived Ukrainian citizens of their liberty, caused serious bodily injuries, simulated executions, and used various types of torture, HUR said.
In March 2022, Manzhiev and Klimienko detained two unarmed local men in Novopetrivka and beat them “inhumanely.” One of the men was tortured with “particular cruelty” and shot dead after several days of torture, HUR said.
The Snigurivka Regional Court of Mykolaiv Oblast examined the evidence gathered on the commission of war crimes and handed down a verdict in absentia. Manzhiev was sentenced to life imprisonment, and Klimienko to 12 years in prison.
Soldiers could not be reached for comment, and the Russia Ministry of Defense did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.
‘A continuous field of battle’ — Huliaipole becomes gray zone as fighting intensifies in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Southern Command says
Last updated 5:47 p.m. Kyiv time.
Ukrainian forces continue to hold positions across most of Huliaipole, but defending the city is becoming increasingly difficult as heavy fighting turns it into a nearly continuous battlefield, according to a recent assessment by DeepState monitoring group, published on Dec. 29.
The report’s findings were confirmed to the Kyiv Independent by Ukraine’s Southern Operational Command. Spokesperson Vladyslav Voloshyn described the fighting as intense and ongoing.
“There is no clear front line anymore — it’s a continuous field of battle,” Voloshyn said on Dec. 29.
DeepState said the city is a gray zone, with Russia’s numerical advantage letting its forces carry out propaganda stunts — including filming video in the city center — despite lacking full control.
Read the full story.
Russia hold ʼlesson of courageʼ for children in occupied Skadovsk, Suspilne reported
Last updated 3:50 p.m. Kyiv time.
Russian occupation authorities organized a so-called “lesson of courage” for schoolchildren in the occupied city of Skadovsk in Ukraine’s southern Kherson Oblast, according to an investigation published by Suspilne on Dec. 29.
According to the investigation, the event was led by a former journalist from Mykolaiv who now cooperates with the occupation administration and heads the local branch of the Russian organization Boyevoye Bratstvo.
During the session, children were shown images related to the war and were given explanations presenting Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine as a justified “special military operation,” Suspilne reported.
The investigation found that Boyevoye Bratstvo has been systematically involved in the militarization of Ukrainian children in occupied territories and is part of Russia’s broader efforts to consolidate control over these regions.
The full investigation is available on Suspilne.
Russian forces executed 2 Ukrainian POWs in Donetsk Oblast, prosecutors say
Last updated 1:35 p.m. Kyiv time.
Russian troops shot dead two unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war on Dec. 27 in the village of Shakhove near Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office reported on Dec. 29, in what appeared to be at least the third reported case this month of captured Ukrainian soldiers being killed after being taken prisoner.
According to the investigation, Russian soldiers forced one of the POWs to partially undress at gunpoint before executing both.
“Seeing that the prisoners of war were dead, they also took off the clothes of the second defender who had already been killed,” the Prosecutor General’s Office said.
A pretrial investigation has been launched under Article 438.2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which covers war crimes resulting in death. The Donetsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office is overseeing the case.
At least 2 killed, 17 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine over past day
At least two people were killed and 17 others injured in Russian attacks against Ukraine over the past day, local authorities reported on Dec. 29.
Russia launched 25 drones at Ukraine overnight, the Air Force said. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 21 drones. Four drones made it through, striking two locations.
In Donetsk Oblast, one person was killed, five were injured in Russian attacks, according to Governor Vadym Filashkin.
In Zaporizhzhia Oblast, a 46-year-old man was killed, two women were injured in Russian attacks against the oblast, Governor Ivan Fedorov said.
In Kherson Oblast, Russian attacks injured nine people over the past day, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.
In Kharkiv Oblast, three people were injured by Russian drone attacks, Governor Oleh Syniehybov said.
In Sumy Oblast, a 55-year-old woman was injured as a result of a Russian drone strike, Governor Oleh Hryhorov said.
General Staff: Russia has lost 1,205,690 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022
Russia has lost around 1,205,690 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported on Dec. 29.
The number includes 1,180 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
According to the report, Russia has also lost 11,472 tanks, 23,837 armored fighting vehicles, 71,891 vehicles and fuel tanks, 35,570 artillery systems, 1,581 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,264 air defense systems, 434 airplanes, 347 helicopters, 96,532 drones, 28 ships and boats, and two submarines.
