Sieverodonetsk still contested
Asot chemical plant is almost completely destroyed
06/17/2022, 12:23 p.m
The Ukrainian city of Sievjerodonetsk is under heavy Russian fire, according to British intelligence experts, the army is trying to surround the city from all sides. According to Ukrainian sources, the Azot chemical plant in the administrative center has been almost completely destroyed.
According to Ukrainian sources, the Azot chemical plant in the heavily contested administrative center of Sievjerodonetsk was almost completely destroyed by Russian artillery and rocket fire. Most recently, a building and the gatehouse were destroyed by the shelling. “There are no surviving administrative buildings on the territory of the chemical giant,” wrote the military governor of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk, Serhiy Hajday, on his Telegram channel. But the fighting for the city would continue.
According to Hajdaj, it was impossible to evacuate the 568 civilians from the chemical plant because of the ongoing shelling by Russian troops. 38 children were among those seeking protection in the bunkers of the facility.
The general staff made similar statements in its situation report: “The fighting for complete control of Sievjerodonetsk is continuing,” it said. The enemy is moving more rocket artillery into the area. The General Staff and Hajdaj unanimously reported repelling a ground attack on the Sieverodonetsk suburb of Zolote.
This also fits the assessment of British intelligence experts. According to them, Russian troops continued their efforts to close the ring around the city from the south. “In the past 24 hours, Russian forces have probably continued to try to gain the upper hand on the Popasna axis, from which they want to encircle the Sievarodonetsk pocket from the south,” the website said in the daily update on the Ukraine war of the British Ministry of Defence.
Slovjansk conurbation not yet under control
The Russian troops have now taken all residential areas in Sieverodonetsk, and the Ukrainian defenders have entrenched themselves in the industrial zone around the chemical plant. Attempts to evacuate civilians, who are also said to be staying in the facility, have so far failed.
According to the general staff, a Russian offensive further west on another strategic target, the Sloviansk conurbation, has failed for the time being. The attempt by the Russians to take control of the village of Bohorodichne, 20 kilometers north of Sloviansk, on the opposite bank of the Seversky Donets river was repulsed.
There are Russian airstrikes in the direction of Avdiivka in the Donetsk region, heavy artillery shelling in southern Ukraine on the border between the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, while the Ukrainians say they have carried out several airstrikes on Russian positions there. The information cannot be verified independently.
British intelligence: Russians also on the Ukrainian side
Despite polls suggesting that the majority of Russians support the war in Ukraine, there are “elements” of the Russian population that are actively and passively expressing opposition, according to British intelligence experts. A Russian-recruited unit called the “Freedom of Russia” Legion is almost certainly taking part in combat operations alongside Ukrainian forces.
The skepticism about the war is particularly great in circles of the business elite and the oligarchs. Exit requests suggested that $15,000 millionaires were trying to leave Russia, the intelligence update said. Since the start of Russia’s war of aggression almost four months ago, the British government has regularly released intelligence information about its progress. Moscow accuses London of a targeted disinformation campaign.