KUPIANSK, KHARKIV OBLAST, Dec 8 — Russians are deploying additional forces near Kupiansk and are preparing for new assaults on Ukrainian positions, Volodymyr Fitio, Ground Forces Command spokesman, told during a telethon.

According to him, the Russians use the equipment as vehicles or for fire support, but due to the large number of Ukrainian drones, they manage to destroy it immediately.

“The Russian occupants are active along the entire line. The adversary is trying to capture Synkivka to organize a bridgehead to Kupiansk,” said Fitio.

Map of the Kupyansk district / Map: Institute for the Study of War and AEI’s Critical Threats Project

Ukrainian troops destroyed 224 occupants and 23 pieces of equipment in the Lyman-Kupiansk sector within the last day, noted the spokesman.

Read also: Constant missile attacks and empty streets: how Kupiansk lives on the front line.

During November 3-26, 296 children were evacuated from the dangerous territory. Two more children are on the list in the Kurylivska community: born in 2012 and 2018. However, there are no children at their addresses. 

Kupiansk, a town with a pre-war population of about 30,000 people, was occupied from late February till September 2022. The city is a railway and road hub in eastern Ukraine between Kharkiv and Luhansk regions.

More from Gwara

On December 6, around 9:30 a.m., the Russian army shelled Podoly of the Kupiansk district. Two local women were injured. One was hospitalized, and the other was provided first aid. 

Ukrainian artillery on the Kupiansk axis destroyed a Russian electromagnetic warfare system with HIMARS. Special operation forces helped direct fire at a station.