Russians broke through to the operational area near Toretsk but were destroyed

A Russian armored group broke through the Ukrainian defense near Toretsk and entered the operational area, where it was later completely destroyed by drones.

The Ukrainian military released the video of the advance and destruction of the vehicles, and Audax geo-reconnaissance identified their geolocation.

A Russian convoy of several armored vehicles broke through to the west from Toretsk and penetrated six kilometers into the Ukrainian rear, reaching Pleshchiyivka.

The Ukrainian military managed to quickly eliminate the breakthrough by intercepting the enemy armored group with the help of attack drones. In particular, one of the photos shows a burned Russian armored vehicle, Z-STS Akhmat.

In January and February, the Ukrainian military carried out an operation to push into the center of Toretsk from the western and northern outskirts with the forces of the Luty assault brigade and the 28th Mechanized Brigade. In the north, they managed to clear the Toretsk mine and retain control of the adjacent spoil heap, a tactically important height for controlling the city.

A fighter with the 93rd Mechanized Brigade, known on social media as Your friend Stus, who is fighting in the Toretsk sector as part of an aerial reconnaissance unit, discussed the stabilization of the front line in early April. He noted the difficult nature of fighting for the bombed-out city due to the high activity of enemy aircraft and drones.

“The Toretsk campaign has dragged on for us for a long time. It was here that we felt the brunt of logistics most acutely, in conditions of parity (or almost) in the air. Russian fiber-optic drones are the biggest pain, although they are not the only ones. CABs, Russian superiority in artillery, and a large number of reconnaissance drones make every day unforgettable.

Toretsk eats up a lot of forces. The nature of these urban battles is very different from our past experience, so every time, we have to adapt to new realities. With this trend in the development of unmanned systems, it’s scary to imagine what will happen even next year, but those who stand still always lose,” he says.

The constant patrolling of reconnaissance drones makes it almost impossible for large groups of infantry and armored vehicles to approach the city, so enemy forces mainly penetrate semi-occupied Toretsk in small groups.

Attempts to enter with large columns of armored vehicles have already ended in complete defeat on the approaches to the city’s buildings: in March, a column of four Russian tanks and an infantry fighting vehicle with troops was broken up by drones from the 28th Brigade’s drone battalion.

In the city itself, heavy small-arms battles are taking place with extensive use of drones. Buildings that cannot be taken by storm are destroyed by planted landmines or tactical aircraft bombs.