Russia went on offensive in Zaporizhzhia region: Ukrainian defenders held battle for over 2.5 hours
Photo: Ukrainian Defense Forces stopped a major Russian assault in southern Ukraine (Getty Images)
Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled a large-scale Russian assault in the Zaporizhzhia region on April 16. Russia threw at least 320 attack aircraft and dozens of pieces of equipment into the battle, according to the Defense Forces of Southern Ukraine.
"On April 16, at about 6 p.m., in southern Ukraine, Russia changed tactics and began assault operations in units," the report said.
As the Southern Defense Forces emphasized, Russia's assault group consisted of at least 320 soldiers, 40 units of armored combat vehicles, 3 tanks, and about a dozen buggies. Assault groups from several regiments of the 58th combined-arms army of the Southern Military District were involved.
The assault operations continued on the line near the settlements of Pyatykhatky, Stepovoe, Lobkove, Mala Tokmachka, and Mali Shcherbaky in the Zaporizhia region.
deepstatemap.live
Russian losses in Ukraine
Ukrainian soldiers' aerial reconnaissance detected Russia's assault in advance. Drones and artillery strikes were launched.
The first defeat of Russian military equipment (3 infantry fighting vehicles were destroyed) occurred 8 kilometers before the line of contact. The battle lasted for more than 2.5 hours, with Ukrainian forces inflicting fire damage on attack aircraft.
Ukrainian Defense Forces of Southern Ukraine reported that 29 units of military equipment, 140 Russian occupiers, and three tanks were damaged.
Ukrainian defenders emphasized that the enemy was not successful, and the Defense Forces of Ukraine did not lose a single position.
Situation at front
As reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 111 combat contacts were recorded on the front line over the past day. The most active areas remain Pokrovsk, Toretsk, Lyman, and Novopavlivka.
Active combat operations are also ongoing in the Kursk region. There, Ukrainian forces repelled 17 Russian attacks over the past day. However, the General Staff does not record the active Russian advance, as it was a few weeks earlier.
Earlier, the Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi, reported that the Russians have launched a new offensive on the Kharkiv and Sumy regions. The General Staff does not rule out that Russia may involve North Korean troops in the fighting.
