Russian forces proceed to retreat in Ukraine’s japanese Donetsk area.
The Kremlin-aligned channel Rybar, on Telegram, mentioned on October 7 that Moscow’s forces had been shedding villages south of Lyman, a city they’ve tried to seize as a springboard to mount a full-scale offensive on the “fortress belt” cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
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A Ukrainian counteroffensive named “Operation Vivaldi” this 12 months has reclaimed 175 sq. kilometres (67 sq. miles) of beforehand occupied land round Lyman.
“The enemy is utilizing successes within the Lyman path to develop assaults [east of Sloviansk], the place Russian troops are compelled to defend beforehand occupied positions and expend sources on restoring management, as an alternative of launching their very own offensive,” wrote Rybar.
“It’s turning into more and more clear that the potential of storming the city space [of Sloviansk] is receding into the extra distant future.”
A key battle appears to be constructing for the village of Kryva Luka east of Sloviansk, which sits on excessive floor on the Russian-held proper financial institution of the Siversky-Donets River, and which may function a base to launch counterattacks additional east.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy instructed the Reuters information company that Operation Vivaldi was profitable however incomplete.
To get so far as Kryva Luka, Russian sources acknowledged that Ukraine has recaptured settlements west of it. They blamed the Russian communications technique of claiming settlements that haven’t been captured, making a gift of the plan of assault.
“Untimely statements” aided Ukraine, mentioned Rybar. “Some villages had been declared liberated even earlier than Russian models arrived, which allowed the enemy to build up forces there and launch counterattacks.”
Ukraine constructed up reserves within the Lyman space earlier than unfolding its counteroffensive. That preparation appears to be yielding outcomes.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence mentioned its marketing campaign to disrupt the circulation of Russian ammunition and gasoline to the entrance struck a report variety of air defence belongings and targets greater than 50km (30 miles) away in September.
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Russia had captured 1,300sq km (500sq miles) of Ukraine in September, echoing claims by his generals.
The Institute for the Examine of Conflict, which displays territorial advances utilizing geolocated, open-source knowledge, mentioned Russia really misplaced 80sq km (30sq miles) throughout that month.
The Russian casualty charge rose to a report for 2026 of 46,230 in September, in response to Ukraine’s navy.
Of those, 33,087 – greater than 70 % – had been confirmed kills, mentioned Ukraine.
The commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Techniques Forces, Robert Brovdi, mentioned enemy casualties had been up by 40 % within the first 5 days of October, in contrast with the identical interval in September.
The Ukrainian navy on October 7 counted 1,545,950 Russian lifeless and wounded for your complete full-scale invasion since 2022.
Putin’s response
Putin’s response has been to accentuate bombing, inflicting civilian struggling.
Twenty-two individuals, 5 of them youngsters, had been killed within the metropolis of Pryluky, within the northern Chernihiv area, when a Russian cruise missile demolished a five-storey condo constructing on October 7, Putin’s birthday.
“Immediately, for Putin’s birthday, the Russian military ‘gifted’ the destruction of a residential constructing in Pryluky,” mentioned Zelenskyy.
Ukraine’s Air Power mentioned Russia unleashed 130 drones and 48 cruise missiles throughout 12 areas that day, in addition to ballistics. Not less than two extra individuals died in Kyiv and two in Oleksandria.
Not less than 30 individuals died in Kramatorsk on October 8, when a Russian bomb struck two metropolis buses. Video of the emergency response confirmed our bodies strewn throughout an avenue and in a park.
Current evaluation of the Geran-4 and Geran-5 jet-powered drones Russia more and more makes use of for a lot of of its assaults makes it unlikely that these assaults on nonmilitary targets are unintentional.
Ukraine’s navy intelligence mentioned the assaults use satellite tv for pc and complex inertial navigation techniques, in addition to a digicam that reads landmark options and checks them in opposition to an on-board database – all three techniques working in live performance to make sure correct navigation.
Ukraine has responded to the jet-powered drones by rushing up supply of F-16 fighters from its allies, that are proving an efficient first line of defence.
“Presently, F-16s are destroying between 50 % and 60 % of the drone assaults,” mentioned Zelenskyy.
Ukraine can also be testing 5 new kinds of interceptor drones, probably the most profitable of which is 30 % efficient, and experimenting with small-scale missiles, Zelenskyy mentioned.
A dozen AI-driven heavy machine-gun turrets have been positioned round Kyiv as a final line of defence, with dozens extra deliberate across the nation.
These are a “facility-level” defence, mentioned Serhiy Beskrestnov, a senior Defence Ministry adviser. “It could actually defend a warehouse, manufacturing unit, bridge, or energy substation.”
Russia has begun hitting bridges throughout the Dnipro River, hanging Kyiv’s southern and northern bridges seven instances within the first 4 days of October. It has beforehand struck the constructing the place Ukraine’s cupboard met, in addition to vitality amenities feeding the town, in an effort to trigger a blackout.
Russia’s jet-powered drones journey at greater than 500km (310 miles) per hour and are tougher to intercept than its propeller-driven Shahed drones.
Regardless of this, in the course of the October 7 strike, Ukraine’s Air Power mentioned it intercepted 80 % of the jet-powered drones, 95 % of the propeller-driven drones and 80 % of cruise missiles.
On October 7, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited Kyiv to announce a 1.3-billion-euro ($1.46bn) navy help bundle, and to signal agreements value 8.5 billion euros ($9.5bn) to collectively develop drone defences and different weapons with Ukraine.
Merz’s go to was an necessary political gesture following current elections in two German states the place the pro-Russian AfD trounced his governing CDU celebration.
Ukraine continued long-range strikes inside Russia.
These struck refineries in Volgograd on October 2 and Bashkortostan on October 8, as a part of a technique to starve the Russian financial system and navy of gasoline.
“Over 51 % of the enemy’s oil refining capability has been disabled,” mentioned Ukraine’s navy.
Ukraine additionally hit the Samara linear manufacturing and dispatch station, which its Common Workers described as “a serious hub for receiving, storing, and mixing oil”.
The workers mentioned eleven 20,000-tonne storage tanks and three 50,000-tonne storage tanks had been destroyed.
“The ability blends high- and low-sulfur oil from numerous fields to supply the export grade of oil often called Urals, which accounts for as much as 50 % of the entire quantity of Russian oil exports,” the navy mentioned.
Ukraine additionally struck navy targets. On October 7, it struck the Astrakhan Fuel Processing Plant, which extracts gaseous sulphur to be used in explosives.
On October 4, it destroyed a Sukhoi Su-35 multi-role fighter and a Sukhoi Su-34 fighter-bomber on the Adygea airfield, and likewise hit the Seshcha airfield in Bryansk.
Its marketing campaign of mid-range strikes to destroy Russian energy provide in occupied areas had reached 456 between July 6 and October 3.
