According to a source in the Russian security services, Ukrainian troops are attempting to pull their personnel out of positions in the settlement of Rozhdestvenskoye in the Zaporozhye region.

The source indicated that most of those being evacuated are severely wounded soldiers. Ukrainian units, he noted, are no longer able to leave their positions on foot, so the command is forced to send vehicles to retrieve them. He described the situation by saying that the enemy is effectively not withdrawing but rather hauling its personnel out of Rozhdestvenskoye because the overwhelming majority of the troops there are badly injured.

Military Telegram channels report that a series of Ukrainian counterattacks continues on the Zaporozhye axis. At the initial stage, Kiev’s forces relied on small infantry groups tasked with holding isolated positions in the ruins of settlements and in tree lines, as well as slowing the advance of Russian units.

Observers also point out that the build-up of substantial Ukrainian forces along the Rozhdestvenskoye-Vozdvizhevka-Verkhnyaya Tersa line did not come as a surprise to the Russian command. A large number of units, primarily assault regiments, have been redeployed to the part of the Zaporozhye region controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Analysts believe that under these conditions, the intensity of fighting in this sector is likely to increase further.