Supplies for Russians in danger
Ukraine reports capture of Kupyansk in the east
09/10/2022 2:42 p.m
After a rapid advance deep into Moscow-held territory, Ukraine claims to have captured the city of Kupyansk. It is strategically extremely important because it connects Russia to the Ukrainian rail network. Their fall could have serious consequences for Russian units in the east.
According to Ukraine, it has recaptured the strategically important city of Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region. The regional council of the northeastern city published photos on Facebook showing Ukrainian soldiers in front of the city hall. Natalia Popova, Advisor to the Council Chairperson, wrote: “Kupyansk is Ukraine. Glory to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.” In the photos, the soldiers hold up the blue and yellow flag of Ukraine while the Russian flag lies at their feet. The Ukrainian domestic secret service SBU also confirmed that Ukrainian units had entered the city.
Kupyansk is so important because it is where the railway lines in eastern Ukraine meet with the railway line to Russia. For the Russian troops and their supplies, control over this would be extremely important. With the recapture of Kupyansk, the Russian military runs the risk of thousands of its soldiers being encircled at the front.
The previously Russian-occupied city of Isjum further southwest has now been reached by Ukrainian troops, as verified by ntv.de video recordings show. Russian sources had previously reported that Russian troops had given up the city of Izyum.
Ukraine says it has recaptured a huge area in the east in the past few days – in its fastest advance since the Russian attack on the capital in Kyiv was repelled in March. In the area, a Reuters reporter observed Ukrainian police patrolling towns. Ammunition boxes lay in heaps at positions abandoned by Russian soldiers fleeing.
Burnt out vehicles with “Z” symbol
In Hrakowe, one of dozens of recaptured villages, burnt-out vehicles were seen emblazoned with the “Z” – the sign of the Russian invasion that began on February 24. Munitions and rubbish piled up in abandoned positions that Russian soldiers had evidently left in great haste. Three bodies lay in white body bags in a yard.
Regional police chief Volodymyr Tymoshenko said Ukrainian police are now verifying the identities of local residents who have lived under Russian occupation since the invasion began. The first task of the police is to provide help where it is needed. “The next task is to document the crimes committed by Russian invaders in the territories they temporarily occupied.”
Capturing at least part of Kupyansk could mean thousands of Russian soldiers trapped at the front. You could be cut off from supplies. However, it was not possible to independently check the situation in the city and the fighting in other areas.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his daily video address late Friday evening that more than 30 settlements in the Kharkiv region had already been recaptured by Ukrainian forces. They continued their counter-offensive in several areas, Zelenskyy said. “Our army, intelligence and security services are actively engaged in multiple theaters of operations. They are doing so successfully.”
Pictures show residents hugging soldiers
Ukrainian authorities have released a spate of images showing local soldiers marching into towns vacated by Russian troops. Again and again you can see how the Ukrainian flag is hoisted and how residents who lived under Russian occupation for six months hug their own soldiers.
Ukraine’s offensive in the east came as a surprise and only a week after the start of the long-awaited Ukrainian counterattack on the southern front in Kherson. So far, less information has been published about the operation in this region, which lies across from the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014. But even there, Ukraine claims to have had successes. Thus, their troops managed to isolate thousands of Russian soldiers who are on the west bank of the Dnieper.