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12-11-2023, 04:23 PM
Pro-Russian official assassinated and Black Sea battles: Here’s what to know about the latest in Ukraine November 11, 2023. A view shows the scene of a car bomb explosion which killed Mikhail Filiponenko, a member of the People's Council of the Luhansk People's Republic and former chief of the LPR People's Militia, in Luhansk, Luhansk People's Republic, Russia. Stanislav Krasilnikov / Sputnik via AP
A view shows the scene of a car bomb explosion which killed the former head of the so-called People’s Militia of the Russian-backed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), Mikhail Filiponenko.
Kyiv
CNN
—
The battle for dominance in the Black Sea raged on this week between Ukraine and Russia, as elsewhere each side’s forces continued the bitter fight for control in Ukraine’s east with winter looming.
Ukraine claimed it hit small Russian naval vessels with sea drones, demonstrating its determination to keep striking Russian positions at depth in occupied Crimea.
Meanwhile, a blast in Russian-occupied territory in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, killed a pro-Moscow official, with a Ukrainian intelligence agency taking credit for the assassination.
Here’s what you need to know about developments this week in Ukraine.
The Black Sea front
Ukrainian Defense Intelligence (GUR) claimed it hit two small Russian naval vessels in the Black Sea on Friday, its latest display of Ukraine’s ability to hit Russian targets in occupied Crimea.
“Two Russian landing craft have been hit with Ukrainian sea drones near Chernomorske, Crimea,” Andriy Yusov, a representative of GUR, said in comments to CNN.
Defence Intelligence released grainy, grayscale video showing what it claims is the moment of the strikes.
Ukraine Defence Intelligence released grainy, grayscale video showing what it claims is the moment of its srikes on Russian navy vessels in the Black sea.
Ukraine Defence Intelligence released grainy, grayscale video showing what it claims is the moment of its srikes on Russian navy vessels in the Black sea.
CNN cannot independently verify the video, date or location. The footage, which seems to be filmed from onboard dash cameras on two unmanned surface drones, appears to show them approaching targets that appear to be landing craft at a dock. The second drone films the first one as it hits what appears to be the Russian landing craft. As the second drone approaches its target, there is what looks like heavy equipment on board the Russian vessel.
Russia has not officially commented on the incident. But Russian military bloggers said unmanned boats had targeted Russia’s Black Sea fleet vessels.
01 ukraine sea drones
Exclusive: Rare access to Ukraine’s sea drones, part of Ukraine’s fightback in the Black Sea
Ukraine has been aggressive in going after targets in occupied Crimea as a part of a broader effort to hit Russian logistics, fuel, maintenance and command centers, in order to disrupt their ability to supply the front lines. Kyiv has also focused on breaking Russia’s dominance in Ukraine’s territorial Black Sea waters.
Moscow unleashed more missiles and attack drones on Odesa over the past week in an effort to hamper Ukraine’s ability to maintain a shipping route out of its Black Sea ports, Ukraine’s military said.
On Wednesday, a Liberian-flagged cargo ship was hit just as it approached port in the Odesa region, killing the ship’s pilot and injuring four others, according to Ukraine’s Operational Command South.
It is thought to be the first time a civilian vessel has been hit since Ukraine established the shipping route – what it calls a humanitarian corridor – from its ports out to the Black Sea, following the collapse of a UN-brokered deal allowing safe passage.
Ukrainian authorities have said the corridor remains open despite the attacks this week.
Fight for Avdiivka
The eastern town of Avdiivka is enclosed on three sides by Russian forces. They have been launching waves of assaults over the past month to complete the siege but Ukrainian soldiers continue “standing their ground and inflicting major losses on the occupiers,” according to Ukraine’s military.
The weather has been unfavorable for Russian assaults with tracked vehicles. That has made the Russians change tactics, according to the Ukrainian military. Russia’s forces have been using more drones to target heavily defended Ukrainian positions and carrying out more assaults on foot using infantry.
AVDIIVKA, UKRAINE - OCTOBER 30: Police conduct evacuation work on October 30, 2023 in Avdiivka, Ukraine. The National Police of Ukraine, along with the "White Angel" special unit, is conducting an operation to evacuate the remaining local residents from the city, which faces daily destruction from artillery fire. According to the national police, approximately 1,400 people are still in the city.
The fighting has escalated in recent days following Russia's major offensive earlier this month. Police conduct evacuation work in Avdiivka, Ukraine, on October 30. Ukrainian defenses are well dug-in in the town, fortifying defensive positions since 2014, when pro-Moscow separatists seized a large portion of the Donbas region, including the nearby city.
Avdiivka has been under fire since launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine
defensive positions are allowing the Ukrainian military to resist waves of relentless Russian attacks. This counteroffensive delivered few gains by Russia. Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, commander of the Tavria Joint Forces Operation, said on Telegram: “We are still standing. And we will continue to stand. B'cos Avdiivka is not just a territory on the map, but a part of Ukraine, a part of soul of Ukrainians and is part Ukrainian Donbas.
“Let the enemy remember we will continue to fight. For every building, terricone or lake” In occupied Luhansk, a car explosion killed a pro-Moscow former head of police on Wednesday. Defense Intelligence took credit for the blast, an operation conducted jointly with pro-Ukrainian partisans. Russian authorities launched an investigation into the explosion, which killed the former head of the so-called People’s Militia of the Russian-backed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) Mikhail Filiponenko. Moscow-backed separatists proclaimed a breakaway republic in Luhansk in 2014.
Defense Intelligence issued a warning to other pro-Russian officials in occupied areas, saying: “All addresses of traitors and places of their service to terrorist. Defense Intelligence of Ukraine states that all war criminals and collaborators will receive a fair retribution!” There have been several assassination attempts against Russian-backed officials in occupied Ukraine, acting interior minister of the LPR, Igor Kornet, was “severely” wounded in an explosion.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/11/world...index.html
A view shows the scene of a car bomb explosion which killed the former head of the so-called People’s Militia of the Russian-backed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), Mikhail Filiponenko.
Kyiv
CNN
—
The battle for dominance in the Black Sea raged on this week between Ukraine and Russia, as elsewhere each side’s forces continued the bitter fight for control in Ukraine’s east with winter looming.
Ukraine claimed it hit small Russian naval vessels with sea drones, demonstrating its determination to keep striking Russian positions at depth in occupied Crimea.
Meanwhile, a blast in Russian-occupied territory in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, killed a pro-Moscow official, with a Ukrainian intelligence agency taking credit for the assassination.
Here’s what you need to know about developments this week in Ukraine.
The Black Sea front
Ukrainian Defense Intelligence (GUR) claimed it hit two small Russian naval vessels in the Black Sea on Friday, its latest display of Ukraine’s ability to hit Russian targets in occupied Crimea.
“Two Russian landing craft have been hit with Ukrainian sea drones near Chernomorske, Crimea,” Andriy Yusov, a representative of GUR, said in comments to CNN.
Defence Intelligence released grainy, grayscale video showing what it claims is the moment of the strikes.
Ukraine Defence Intelligence released grainy, grayscale video showing what it claims is the moment of its srikes on Russian navy vessels in the Black sea.
Ukraine Defence Intelligence released grainy, grayscale video showing what it claims is the moment of its srikes on Russian navy vessels in the Black sea.
CNN cannot independently verify the video, date or location. The footage, which seems to be filmed from onboard dash cameras on two unmanned surface drones, appears to show them approaching targets that appear to be landing craft at a dock. The second drone films the first one as it hits what appears to be the Russian landing craft. As the second drone approaches its target, there is what looks like heavy equipment on board the Russian vessel.
Russia has not officially commented on the incident. But Russian military bloggers said unmanned boats had targeted Russia’s Black Sea fleet vessels.
01 ukraine sea drones
Exclusive: Rare access to Ukraine’s sea drones, part of Ukraine’s fightback in the Black Sea
Ukraine has been aggressive in going after targets in occupied Crimea as a part of a broader effort to hit Russian logistics, fuel, maintenance and command centers, in order to disrupt their ability to supply the front lines. Kyiv has also focused on breaking Russia’s dominance in Ukraine’s territorial Black Sea waters.
Moscow unleashed more missiles and attack drones on Odesa over the past week in an effort to hamper Ukraine’s ability to maintain a shipping route out of its Black Sea ports, Ukraine’s military said.
On Wednesday, a Liberian-flagged cargo ship was hit just as it approached port in the Odesa region, killing the ship’s pilot and injuring four others, according to Ukraine’s Operational Command South.
It is thought to be the first time a civilian vessel has been hit since Ukraine established the shipping route – what it calls a humanitarian corridor – from its ports out to the Black Sea, following the collapse of a UN-brokered deal allowing safe passage.
Ukrainian authorities have said the corridor remains open despite the attacks this week.
Fight for Avdiivka
The eastern town of Avdiivka is enclosed on three sides by Russian forces. They have been launching waves of assaults over the past month to complete the siege but Ukrainian soldiers continue “standing their ground and inflicting major losses on the occupiers,” according to Ukraine’s military.
The weather has been unfavorable for Russian assaults with tracked vehicles. That has made the Russians change tactics, according to the Ukrainian military. Russia’s forces have been using more drones to target heavily defended Ukrainian positions and carrying out more assaults on foot using infantry.
AVDIIVKA, UKRAINE - OCTOBER 30: Police conduct evacuation work on October 30, 2023 in Avdiivka, Ukraine. The National Police of Ukraine, along with the "White Angel" special unit, is conducting an operation to evacuate the remaining local residents from the city, which faces daily destruction from artillery fire. According to the national police, approximately 1,400 people are still in the city.
The fighting has escalated in recent days following Russia's major offensive earlier this month. Police conduct evacuation work in Avdiivka, Ukraine, on October 30. Ukrainian defenses are well dug-in in the town, fortifying defensive positions since 2014, when pro-Moscow separatists seized a large portion of the Donbas region, including the nearby city.
Avdiivka has been under fire since launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine
defensive positions are allowing the Ukrainian military to resist waves of relentless Russian attacks. This counteroffensive delivered few gains by Russia. Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, commander of the Tavria Joint Forces Operation, said on Telegram: “We are still standing. And we will continue to stand. B'cos Avdiivka is not just a territory on the map, but a part of Ukraine, a part of soul of Ukrainians and is part Ukrainian Donbas.
“Let the enemy remember we will continue to fight. For every building, terricone or lake” In occupied Luhansk, a car explosion killed a pro-Moscow former head of police on Wednesday. Defense Intelligence took credit for the blast, an operation conducted jointly with pro-Ukrainian partisans. Russian authorities launched an investigation into the explosion, which killed the former head of the so-called People’s Militia of the Russian-backed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) Mikhail Filiponenko. Moscow-backed separatists proclaimed a breakaway republic in Luhansk in 2014.
Defense Intelligence issued a warning to other pro-Russian officials in occupied areas, saying: “All addresses of traitors and places of their service to terrorist. Defense Intelligence of Ukraine states that all war criminals and collaborators will receive a fair retribution!” There have been several assassination attempts against Russian-backed officials in occupied Ukraine, acting interior minister of the LPR, Igor Kornet, was “severely” wounded in an explosion.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/11/world...index.html
