The battle for Avdiivka, the Ukraine-held key town in Donetsk region, had another development as sources indicate that Russians forces broke through the defenses, and entered the town on the north side.
Up until that point, most activity was centered in the south, where the besiegers have reached the outskirts of the urban area, and Kiev regime evacuated the civilian population.
Pro-Ukrainian Journalist, Senior Editor Security Policy and Conflicts at German Paper BILD, Julian Röpke wrote in his X social media account that forces invading from the north secured a foothold inside the city:
#NewsMap
Russian invasion forces advanced appr. 1500 meters inside #Avdiivka, capturing the entire northern dacha quarter & securing a foothold in the northern part of the city itself.
Ukraine defends one front (Stepove) successfully, but is incapable to defend the entire town. pic.twitter.com/ievJDhp8n7— Julian Röpcke (@JulianRoepcke) February 2, 2024
‘Ukraine defends one front (Stepove) successfully, but is incapable to defend the entire town’, Röpke wrote.
This story is developing, and hasn’t broken in the MSM yet, but not only is this story coming from Ukrainian sources – meaning they are not ‘Moscow propaganda’ – but there is also geo-located footage from Ukrainian drones showing Russian fighters inside the Avdiivka urban area.
Pro-Russian analyst and news aggregator Simplicius the Thinker reported:
“As the former platoon commander of the nationalist battalion ‘Aidar’ Yevgeny Dikiy said, the Ukrainian Armed Forces will apparently have to leave Avdiivka.
According to Dikiy, the likelihood of the Ukrainian Armed Forces withdrawing from Avdiivka is growing every day for one reason: ‘shell hunger’, as well as the approach of Russian troops to the supply route.”
As it’s usually the case, the military top leaders, headed by General Zaluzhny, advocate to retreat from the town to more stable defensive lines, while the political leaders led by Zelensky want to hold the town at all costs.
Kiev Post reported:
“Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said that his troops had broken through to the [southern] outskirts of Avdiivka, which has been a high-priority target for Moscow […]
In televised remarks that come about two months before Russian presidential elections, Putin claimed that troops ‘broke through the enemy’s defenses and reached the outskirts of Avdiivka. ‘They captured 19 houses and are holding them’, he claimed.”
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