War In Ukraine Day 24: Overview Of Military Developments

Street fighting continues in Mariupol. On March 19th, the DPR troops continued their advance towards the city center. In the evening, no major developments were reported. The Azov militants and other Ukrainian formations have almost no chance to save control over the city. The time passes and nationalist militants are running out of ammunition.

Numerous attempts of Ukrainian soldiers to escape from the city in civilian closes were reported. However, a lot of them are prevented from leaving the city by DPR and Russian forces.

The mass evacuation of civilians that was possible after the outskirts and several regions of Mariupol were liberated from the Ukrainian militants pose a big threat for the Ukrainian nationalists, as the victims are now testifying on numerous war crimes committed by the Azov members. The liberation of the city is now the main task for the DPR units because those civilians who are still in hostage in Mariupol may be murdered by the nationalists.

Dozens of videos showing the testimonies by locals who survived and escaped from Mariupol are shared by the DPR officials daily.

“They gather people into a large group, they say that there will be a humanitarian corridor. People are gathering. They destroy them there, they kill them there. This is done by the Azov. There is no one else. We don’t have Russian troops, we don’t have the DPR, we don’t have anyone. They and only they. With blue armbands.” – a woman confirmed.

 

Elimination of nationalist militants in Mariupol will liberate significant forces for the offensive on the UAF grouping deployed on the Donbass front lines, where the DPR and LPR units are slowly advancing in several directions.

In the evening, the local sources confirmed that the city of Ugledar was taken under control of Russian forces. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have actively advanced in the direction of Kurakhovo. The highway to Zaporozhye near the village of Bogatyr should be cut in the nearest future. This will cut all the supplies for the AFU grouping in the towns of Kurakhovo and Maryinka. Fierce clashes in Maryinka continue. In Maryinka, after several days of fighting and heavy artillery shelling, DPR forces inflicted heavy losses on the enemy and advanced several kilometers, but they are still far from the complete capture of the UAF fortifications in the area. The surrounding of the UAF in the town from the east may take place soon.

Meanwhile, in Avdiivka, no advances by the DPR were reported, but heavy artillery shelling and air strikes continue in the area.

 

New successes of the LPR units were reported in the Severodonetsk-Lisichansk region. The town of Rubezhnoye is under the LPR control, the mop up operations continue. The LPR troops advanced to the northern outskirts of Lisichansk. The assault on the city is  expected in the coming days.

Clashes continue on the outskirts of Popasnaya. Some clashes are still breaking out in the town.

On March 19, Russian forces reportedly advanced towards the town of Kamenka to the south of Izyum. Sporadic clashes continue on the southern outskirts of Izyum. Kamenka is a strategic stronghold of the AFU aimed to hinder the effective development of the Russian offensive on Slavyansk and Barvenkovo.

 

Heavy fighting continued to the north and east of the city of Kharkiv. Russian artillery forces continued the shelling of the UAF positions, without entering the city.

The VSK of the Russian Federation hit a repair plant in Chernihiv:

 

The Russian Kinzhal (Dagger) hypersonic missiles destroyed a large underground warehouse of missiles and aviation ammunition in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. Missile complex “Bastion” destroyed the centers of radio and radio intelligence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Odessa region.

 

 

In the Kiev region, some expansion of the control zone of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation to the west and south of the capital was reported. However, no control over any new settlements was officially confirmed. Fighting continues in the same areas.

 

In the south of the country, Russian warplanes and artillery are inflicting heavy losses to the AFU grouping deployed in Nikolaev. The AFU are still counting casualties in the recent missile attack on the military facilities of the 79th brigade. According to various media reports, the number of casualties may grow up to 200 servicemen. No assault on the city has taken place so far.

 

In Odessa, the manoeuvres of the Russian Black Sea fleet are distracting the AFU deployed in the city. While the city is waiting for the Russian assault, the fortifications made by the AFU on the shore are now posing more threat to local civilians and the shipping in the whole region. Russian officials warned that some of Ukrainian sea mines planted in the Black Sea were torn off by a storm and carried away towards Romania and Bulgaria.

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• War In Ukraine Day 23: Russian Forces On Track To Achieve Strategic Goals
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