Don's Weekly, 19 February 2024: Part 2
(…continued from Part 1…)
Zaporizhzhia
Starting last July, Russia used 2,100 railroad cars to construct a 30 km barrier in the event of a Ukrainian breakthrough during its offensive. The obstacles extends from the railway station in Olenivka to Volnovakha…
The Russians have been attacking the Robotyne salient and they are expected to continue to do so…
https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1758250440473346451
A Ukrainian helicopter was shot down by an anti-tank missile near Robotyne…
https://twitter.com/GeoConfirmed/status/1757423206997062107
A Russian drone team was eliminated…
https://twitter.com/Danspiun/status/1757552627267584233
Prior to a major assault, Russia bombarded Ukrainian positions…
https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1759185969591324939?s=20
The large Russian assault that followed was then stopped by ATGMs, DPICM and HE rounds from artillery and mortars…
https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1759127220994429316
***
Kherson
A Russian armored vehicle was hit 20 km from the river…
https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1758455034931515442
A BMP buried in sand is destroyed by a drone. Burying a vehicle removes its mobility but as a static gun its hull is protected. This has been used in a few wars when vehicles would fire against other vehicles, but drones don’t care if a vehicle buried…
https://twitter.com/bayraktar_1love/status/1758454173664764147
A Baba Yaga drone hunted the Russians at night…
https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/status/1758279322975228252
Russian soldiers are hunted in the rubble…
https://twitter.com/GirkinGirkin/status/1757811876199641117
***
Black Sea
A Russian amphibious assault ship was carrying cargo from Novorossiysk to Sevastopol when it was intercepted and sunk by five Magura V5 sea drones on the southern coast of Crimea. With a cruising speed of 41 kph, the drones had to travel 8.5 hours to reach the interception point from the Odesa coast. This thread has the video and location of the attack and the announcement by Budanov…
https://twitter.com/bayraktar_1love/status/1757681885537325211
***
Russia
Ukraine claims it shot down two Su-34s and an Su-35 in the east. Russia says only an Su-35 was lost…
https://twitter.com/Maks_NAFO_FELLA/status/1758809305006911938
Ukraine says another Su-34 was shot down the next day…https://www.kyivpost.com/post/28233
A drone operator says it’s illegal to acquire drones through fundraising, there are only two drone repair centers in Donetsk, and they prioritize fixing drones for specific units. As a result, some units have been short of drones since December. Also, VPNs were banned even though that is how they receive updates to protect against Ukrainian electronic warfare…
https://twitter.com/wartranslated/status/1756068668419535074
Russia is increasing the mobilization age from 45 to 55. Junior, senior and high rank officers can be called back up to 60, 65 and 70, respectively…https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-extends-eligibility-military-call-up-by-least-five-years-2023-07-18/
With 11% unemployment (19% among 15-29 year olds), gas prices rising because of lower Russian exports, the lure of $2,000 a month, plus a Russian passport, which would make world travel easier, many Nepalese have joined the Russian army. 23% of Nepal’s GDP comes from citizens working in other countries.
At first Nepal said that reports of their citizens fighting for Russia weren't true. They now say over 200 are in the Russian army. One wounded Nepalese soldier in the Russian army says it’s closer to 2,500 or 3,000 ex-students, former army members or those that fought in the Maoist insurgency. A Nepalese opposition lawmaker says 15,000 have joined the Russian army and 2,000 families have requested help getting loved ones home.
One wounded soldier escaped and made his way back home. He warned others not to join, saying the chances of death were too high. Various Nepalese have reported being used as meat assaults while Russians stay safe behind them, of being abused by commanders when they express concerns, and some say they haven’t received the money they were promised. They would like to return home but feel trapped and don’t want to be charged with desertion…https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepalis-in-the-russian-army-want-to-quit
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/02/12/world/politics/nepali-mercenaries-russia-ukraine/
https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/10/asia/nepal-fighters-russia-ukraine-families-intl-cmd/index.html
Over a month ago, the US said that there were 60,000 Russian dead and 315,000 dead and wounded. Russia will occasionally use the wounded for propaganda purposes but they generally try to hide the wounded and amputees to reduce antiwar protests that occurred in Chechnya and Afghanistan. A senior Russian official estimates that more than half the seriously wounded are amputees. Those that do not have permanent incapacitating wounds are treated and returned to the front as soon as possible.
One student was wounded by fragments from a drone. In his ward, doctors spent less than five minutes with each soldier. A doctor ran a magnet over his wounds. When he did not react, he was given disinfectant and bandages and told to return to the front six days later. He escaped Russia with help from the Georgian group, “Go by the Forest”.
The head of the Russian center for tactical medicine said that over half the Russians that died had injuries that weren’t life threatening, and that one third of the amputations were from improperly tied tourniquets…https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/15/us/russia-soldiers-ukraine-war.html?te=1&nl=the-morning&emc=edit_nn_20240215
The FSB arrested two senior employees of the Air Transport Agency for illegally selling 59 aircraft and helicopters abroad - and that after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The aircraft left as part of cargo or charter flights and never returned. More individuals are under investigation. 21 aircraft were sold to countries outside Russia’s economic union (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Belarus). Eight were sold to unnamed ‘hostile countries’. Three Mi-8’s and two Il-76’s are now flying for Ukraine…https://www.kyivpost.com/post/27958
***
Ukraine
On 15 February 2024, Ukraine shot down 13 out of 26 Russian missiles, one - a North-Korean-made KN-23 - left a deep crater in the Kyiv area…
https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1758202296993783821
The route of the Russian missiles on the February 15 attack…
https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1758130932421161382
(…to be continued…)
Regarding drones. I have a feeling that Ukraine shoots down fewer of the drones this year? Is it true? If true is this because of improved Russian tactics, lack of amunition or something Else?
" 60,000 Russian dead and 315,000 dead and wounded". Presumably that means 60,000 dead and 255,000 wounded. Seems a bit disappointingly low but all those wounded might just get Russian society to wake up.