Russia’s war on Ukraine. 24.08.24

In the operational zone of the Ukrainian Operational Group of Forces (OTG) “Kharkiv” on the Kharkiv direction, there were 7 engagements near Lyptsi and Vovchansk.

In the “Khortytsia” Operational-Strategic Group of Forces (OSG) operational zone on the Kupyansk direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 20 enemy attacks in the areas of Petropavlivka, Kurylivka, Synkivka, and Stelmakhivka. On the Lyman direction, 13 enemy attacks were repelled in the areas of Makiivka, Druzhelyubivka, Novosadove, Nevske, Torske, and Terny. On the Siversk direction, 7 attacks were repelled near Vyimka, Bilohorivka, and Spirne. On the Kramatorsk direction, Ukrainian forces repelled 22 Russian attempts to advance near Chasiv Yar, Kalynivka, and Ivanivske. Supported by assault aviation, the enemy made 9 attempts to push forward on the Toretsk direction, focusing on the areas around Nelipivka and Toretsk.

In the “Tavriya” OSG operational zone, on the Pokrovsk direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 44 enemy attacks. The enemy is trying to advance towards Vozdvyzhenka, Kalynove, Novohrodivka, Hrodivka, Ptyche, and Zelene Pole. On the Kurakhove direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to hold back the enemy in the areas of Kostyantynivka, Heorhiivka, Krasnohorivka, and Karlivka, where the occupiers attempted to breach Ukrainian defensive lines 16 times. On the Vremivka direction, the enemy made 11 attempts to seize positions near Vodyane and Vuhledar.

On the Orikhiv and Prydniprovskiy directions, the enemy did not conduct offensive operations but systematically carried out airstrikes and shelled civilian infrastructure in Ukrainian towns and villages.

General conclusion:

• Russian forces have redeployed some units from the Kharkiv direction to the Kursk Oblast, but they still have enough manpower in the area to continue assaults.
• Current U.S. restrictions on the Ukrainian Defense Forces’ use of U.S.-provided weapons for strikes on military targets in Russia’s border regions allow for return fire when defending against enemy forces across the international border, including in Kursk Oblast.

Change in the line of contact (LoC):

• There were 149 combat engagements on various fronts.
• On the Kursk Direction: “Siversk” OSG continued its advance near Sudzha, moving further into the southern part of Russkaya Konopelka, north of Martynovka along the R-200 highway from Sudzha to Sukhodolovka. Mobile groups of the OTG clashed with enemy cover detachments in the Samoryadovo and Kozyrevka areas. The enemy attempted to regain lost positions in Spalnoe and Krupets, west of Korenevo, and repelled an attack near Aleksandrovka.
• On the Kharkiv direction, fighting continued north and northeast of Kharkiv, but there were no changes in the front line. Russian forces advanced northeast of Vovchansk, repelled a “Kharkiv” OSG assault near Hlyboke, and continued attacks near Hlyboke, Starytsya, Vovchansk, and Tykhe.
• Ukrainian Defense Forces infantry groups regularly attacked near Ohirtsove and Hatyshche but did not advance in this area.
• On the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces continued offensive actions in the Synkivka area, near Petropavlivka, and around Hlushkivka, Stelmakhivka, Andriivka, Lozova, and Druzhelyubivka.
• On the Lyman direction, Russian forces advanced northwest of Kreminna, continuing their offensive along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line in the eastern part of Makiivka. The enemy attacked near Novosadove, Makiivka, Nevske, and around Torske and Terny.
• On the Siversk Direction, Russian forces continued their offensive actions in the Bilohorivka, Verkhnyokamianske, Vyimka, and Spirne areas.
• On the Kramatorsk direction, Russian forces continued their offensive near Chasiv Yar, but there were no changes to the front line. The occupiers advanced near Ivanivske, Klishchiivka, and within the “Zhovtnevyi” neighborhood, and continued offensive actions near Kalynivka.
• On the Toretsk direction, Russian forces advanced within the southeastern part of Toretsk, reaching the central hospital, and conducted offensive actions near Pivnichne, Druzhba, Nelipivka, and New York.
• On the Pokrovsk direction, Russian forces advanced west of Orlivka, within the eastern part of Novohrodivka, captured Krutyi Yar, and advanced further west of Orlivka, south of Mykolaivka, west of Skuchne, toward Mykhailivka, southwest and southeast of Ptyche, and continued offensive actions in the areas of Vozdvyzhenka, Zelene Pole, Hrodivka, Kalynove, Novohrodivka, Mykolaivka, Novohrodivka, and Karlivka.
• On the Kurakhove direction, Russian forces advanced southwest of Krasnohorivka, near Kostyantynivka, and north of Paraskoviivka, conducting offensive actions near Heorhiivka, Kostyantynivka, Vodyane, Volodymyrivka, and Vuhledar.
• On the Vremivka direction, positional battles continued near Rozdolne and Urozhaine.
• In the Black Sea-Azov naval operational area, the enemy naval group on combat duty consists of:
  • Mediterranean Sea: 2 ships, including 0 cruise missile carriers; the total salvo is 0 cruise missiles.

Changes in the enemy disposition:

• The 41st Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 72nd Motorized Rifle Division of the 44th Army Corps and the 4th Volunteer Reconnaissance and Assault Brigade operate near Vovchansk.
• Units of the 11th Separate Engineering Brigade of the Southern Military District are active near Verkhnyokamianske.

Possible operation situation developments:

• The enemy will have to withdraw the units of the 155th Separate Marines Brigade of the Pacific Fleet from Kulbaki, as they are engaged in combat on the southern flank of the brigade and risk being cut off. It is expected that units of the 98th Airborne Division will be redeployed to the area south of the Seim River.
• On the Kupyansk direction, in the operational zone of the 1st Tank Army, command of the enemy’s “Zapad (West)” Operational Grouping will attempt to reach the Oskil River in the Hlushkivka – Zahryzove sector, the Petropavlivka – Kurylivka line, and storm Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi railway junction. To bind the “Khortytsia” OSG forces, the enemy will exert frontal pressure on their positions in the Stepova Novoselivka area.
• On the Pokrovsk direction, the enemy will likely attempt to cut off the Pokrovsk–Kostyantynivka highway and prepare for an assault on the Pokrovsk–Myrnohrad agglomeration.
• The enemy’s advance through Hrodivka on the Pokrovsk direction is likely to slow down as Russian forces begin fighting in an urban environment. It will be difficult for them to maintain their current pace of advance, particularly as they attempt to push further west towards Myrnohrad and Pokrovsk, as these cities are even more urbanized.

Russian operational losses from 24.02.22 to 24.08.24  

Personnel – almost 606,490 (+1160); 

Tanks 8,542 (+9);

Armored combat vehicles – 16,620 (+21); 

Artillery systems – 17,349 (+42);

Multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) – 1,169 (+2);

Anti-aircraft warfare systems – 935 (+3);

Vehicles and fuel tanks – 23,383 (+54);

Aircraft – 367 (0);

Helicopters – 328 (0);

UAV operational and tactical level – 14,064 (+39);

Intercepted cruise missiles – 2,444 (+2);

Boats/ships – 29 (0).

Humanitarian+general:

• Ukraine has secured the release of 115 Ukrainian prisoners of war from Russian captivity. Among those freed are nine defenders who were unlawfully sentenced, naval servicemen, and three border guards. Additionally, 82 defenders of Mariupol, including about fifty who defended “Azovstal,” have returned home. Six National Guardsmen from the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant garrison, as well as soldiers who defended the Kyiv, Donetsk, Kherson, and Luhansk Oblasts, are also coming home.
• Throughout the past day, Russian forces carried out 87 shelling attacks on 13 communities in Sumy Oblast, injuring four civilians. A total of 265 explosions were recorded.
• On the night of August 24, Russian forces shelled the Zelenodolsk community in the Kryvyi Rih district with artillery. An 85-year-old woman was injured, a fire broke out, and a private house was damaged.
• As a result of Russian shelling between August 23 and 24, damage was inflicted on an energy facility in the central part of Ukraine. Additionally, equipment at a substation in the east was damaged after a night attack, and a power line in the southeast was hit.
• Around 12:00 PM, the occupiers struck the village of Novoosynove in the Kupyansk district of Kharkiv Oblast. The shelling caused a private house to catch fire, injuring four women who were hospitalized.
• On August 24, 2024, around 11:00 AM, the occupiers shelled a residential area in Kherson, resulting in the deaths of two men and injuries to a one-year-old boy.
• At 11:46 AM on August 24, Russian forces, likely using artillery, shelled a residential neighborhood in the city of Kostyantynivka. The attack resulted in the deaths of five civilians, with at least five more injured.

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