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VIDEO WITH COMMENTARY

22 Apr: New Tactic. Russians Make SUICIDAL ATACKS TO CONFUSE UKRAINIANS | War in Ukraine Explained
Reporting from Ukraine
Apr 22, 2023 9:30p.m. DST
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpRjeBuX3oI

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I am a Ukrainian. My country has been invaded by Russia. In this video I will tell you what happened on the four hundred and twenty third day of the war.

Day 423: April 22

Today there are a lot of updates from the Donetsk region. Here, after suffering a series of defeats, Russians realized that Ukrainians already knew how Russians were going to attack them and started destroying Russian assault units already on the approach. In order to solve the problem, Russian forces started sending several assault units in suicidal attacks to divert Ukrainian attention and then sent a second group to hit the real target.

Last time I told you that Russian forces launched unsuccessful tank assaults north of Vodiane in an attempt to recapture an important strong point on a hill. I also told you that Ukrainians reinforced the units on the contact line with ATGMs, and Ukrainians started destroying Russian vehicles with supplies.

The freshest reports indicate that Ukrainians have doubled down on their efforts to destroy Russian forces before they even reach the front. If previously, we saw a lot of combat footage showing how Ukrainians destroyed Russian tanks and armor vehicles in front of Vodiane, then over the last week, Ukrainians have successfully increased the range of effective fire and started targeting Russian armor in Pisky, which is around 4 km away from the closest Ukrainian positions. Several days ago, Ukrainians filmed their preventative operation and showed how they successfully prevented a Russian assault near Vodiane by destroying one armored fighting vehicle and forcing the other one to turn around and flee.

A long series of defeats around Vodiane seem to have forced Russians to stop pushing in this direction, especially as they started having extreme problems with supplies due to the constant ATGM fire. Instead, Russians diverted their attention to Nevelske. Attacking Nevelske is not easy either – Russians have to cross vast fields under artillery, mortar, and ATGM fire. In previous isolated assaults, their tanks did not even reach the target. However, the supply lines of this group are quite safe, which is why the decision was made to increase the intensity of attacks in this direction.

It seems like Russians forces learned from their mistakes, developed a new plan of attack, and tricked Ukrainian forces. Previously, Russians were always attacking along the ravine. Such a tactic had its advantages and disadvantages. One the one hand, they successfully avoided crossfire because Ukrainians in Pervomaiske could not fire at them directly. On the other hand, it made it easier for the Ukrainians in Nevelske to destroy them because Nevelske is located in the highlands. In any case, the practice showed that the disadvantages outweighed the advantages because Russians were always destroyed by the approach.

However, this time, in addition to sending one assault unit into yet another suicidal attack, they suddenly opened a second line of attack from the south. Geolocated footage released by the Russian side showed that Russians used 2 tanks and several squads of infantry in their second line of attack. Each tank rapidly advanced along the tree line, suppressed Ukrainian fire, and paved the way for Russian infantry to engage. It looks like the first suicidal group drew the attention of all ATGM crews that operate on the hill in Nevelske, and while this first group was being hunted down and destroyed, the second group exploited the window of opportunity and safely used their tanks to achieve their goal.

In the northern part of the region, Ukrainians managed to stabilize the situation. Ukrainian marines from the 36th Brigade continue destroying Russian concentrations of forces along the embankment. Judging by the combat footage, most of them are hiding in the remnants of the destroyed bridge, although some of them are establishing additional firing points. Ukrainian fighters from the 110th Mechanized Brigade continue curtailing Russian attempts at advancing toward Stepove. A lot of artillery strikes are conducted on their main bridgehead, which is in Kranshorivka.

Ukrainian President recently visited Avdiivka and awarded Ukrainian fighters for stopping the recent Russian offensive in the region. A lot of medals were received by soldiers from the 110th Mechanized Brigade, who were responsible for the hottest section of the front line and took the hardest hits. The soldiers, in turn, gifted the president with the patch of their Brigade.