Ukraine Springs Ambush On Russians, Recaptures Half of Severodonetsk

The Ukrainian army appears to have convinced the Russians they were retreating from Severodonetsk, a contested city on the edge of the Donbas, but then infiltrated back into the city and sprung an ambush which led to much of the city's recapture. 

Russian forces are reportedly attempting to bomb bridges from the west into Severodonetsk in order to prevent Ukraine from bringing up further reinforcements. The larger issue is that, once again, Russia, despite its advantage in men and materiel, remains unable to convincingly push the Ukrainians back almost anywhere. JL 

Thomson Reuters reports via CBC:

Ukraine on Friday said it recaptured a large chunk of territory in fierce fighting for Severodonetsk. The Ukrainian military “dragged” Russian troops into a trap in Severodonetsk. "The enemy suffers losses and receives hard counterattacks." Reuters reached Severodonetsk on Thursday and was able to verify that Ukrainians held part of the city. Ukrainian troops, including foreign volunteers drove toward a plume of black smoke at high speed over roads littered with wrecked armoured vehicles.

Ukraine on Friday said it recaptured a large chunk of territory in fierce fighting for Severodonetsk and foiled an attempt by Russian troops to advance from the devastated eastern industrial city on the 100th day of Russia's invasion.

The Ukrainian military “dragged” Russian troops into a trap in Severodonetsk. The enemy suffers losses and receives hard counterattacks.

Aleksey Arestovich, the adviser to the head of the President’s Office, said this on his Facebook page.

Ukraine's defence minister said his troops were already training in Europe to operate new, advanced missile systems pledged this week by the United States and Britain, which Kyiv hopes will help swing the battle in its favour.

A war that Western countries believe Russia planned to win within hours has ground on for more than three months at a cost of thousands of lives and disruption to the global economy. Moscow was driven back from Kyiv and launched a huge new assault in the east.

Rejecting Western criticism that the war is to blame for rising global food prices and is hurting poor countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin denied Moscow was preventing Ukrainian ports from exporting cereals.

Reuters reached Severodonetsk on Thursday and was able to verify that Ukrainians still held part of the city. Troops drove toward a plume of black smoke at high speed over roads littered with wrecked armoured vehicles. One soldier sat in the back seat, his face streaked with blood from injuries.

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At another location in the city, Ukrainian troops, including foreign volunteers, were unloading weapons from a truck.

"We're gonna push the Russians back. It will take a day, a month, or a year," said Zurab Kakalidze, a 22-year-old Georgian, noting the time frame didn't matter. "We are on the right side of history."

On Friday, the Ukrainian head of the Luhansk region Serhiy Gaidai told national television that Ukrainian troops had recaptured around 20 per cent of the territory they had lost to Russian forces in Severodonetsk.

Reuters could not independently verify Gaidai's claim.

Two Reuters journalists were injured and a driver killed after their vehicle came under fire as they tried to reach Severodonetsk from an area controlled by Russian-backed separatists.

Russians 'simply destroying everything'

Gaidai said the Russians were shelling Ukrainian positions for hours and then advancing, only to be repulsed by defenders who had not been hurt, before repeating the pattern.

"This is how they are moving forward, step by step, because with artillery, aircraft, mortars, they are simply destroying everything," he said.

"But as soon as we have enough Western long-range weapons, we will push their artillery away from our positions. And then, believe me, the Russian infantry, they will just run."

Russian soldiers attempted to advance toward Lysychansk, across the Siverskyi Donetsk River from Severodonetsk, but were forced to retreat, Ukraine's military general staff said.

Need for weapons in Sloviansk

In neighbouring Donetsk province, also a target of Moscow's eastern offensive, Russian troops were just 15 kilometres outside the city of Sloviansk, regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

Donetsk will not fall quickly, but it needs more weapons to keep the attackers at bay, Kyrylenko said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an overnight address that Kyiv was expecting more "good news" on foreign arms after the latest $700-million US weapons package for Ukraine.

"Victory will be ours," he said later on Friday in a video address from outside his Kyiv office to mark 100 days of the war.