Battle of Avdiivka | |||||||
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Part of the war in Donbas and later of the eastern Ukraine offensive of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine | |||||||
![]() A church destroyed in Avdiivka on 21 February | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Units involved | |||||||
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Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown | 5 killed[8] | ||||||
15+ civilians killed, 28+ wounded |
The battle of Avdiivka is an ongoing military engagement between the Russian Armed Forces and Donbas Separatist Forces on one side and the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the other. It is being fought over the town of Avdiivka, located in the Donbas region.[9] Fighting started when violence erupted again in the Donbas on 21 February, when Russian president Vladimir Putin recognized the Donetsk People's Republic.[10] Days later, when Russia invaded Ukraine, Avdiivka was among the first places to be attacked.[11] Avdiivka was where the former battle of Avdiivka was fought in 2017, resulting in the destruction of the town, though Ukrainian forces still held it.[9]
Battle
Early fighting (20–24 February)
Fighting erupted on 20 February, when pro-Russian forces started fighting again in Avdiivka.[12][failed verification] DPR forces entered the city, but were repelled.[13][failed verification] On 21 February, it was reported that Russian troops were aiding the separatists in Avdiivka,[11] but Russia has denied it.
Official Russian entry into the battle (24 February)
When Russia officially started its invasion of Ukraine, Avdiivka was one of its main targets. On 13 March, Russian forces bombed the Avdiivka Coke Plant[14] and it was reported on 25 March that Artem Murakhovskyi, a commander of the Azov Battalion, was killed in Avdiivka.[3]
Escalation (18 April – present)
On 18 April, Russia renewed its invasion on Eastern Ukraine by heavily shelling and attacking Avdiivka.[15][16][17] Around 2,000 of Avdiivka's residents were forced to flee underground.[18][19][20]
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20220608061313im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/1st_school_of_Avdiivka_after_Russian_shelling_on_18_May_2022.jpg/220px-1st_school_of_Avdiivka_after_Russian_shelling_on_18_May_2022.jpg)
During the battle, use of white phosphorus munitions by Russian forces was reported several times. Governor of Donetsk Oblast Pavlo Kyrylenko reported a phosphorus attack on the city industrial zone on 26 March,[21] on the area of the coking plant on 26 April, and on the city center, causing several fires, the next day.[22][23] On 18 May, Avdiivka 1st school was destroyed by a Russian attack with phosphorus munitions.[24][25] On 29 April, videos of Russian army shelling Ukrainian forces in Avdiivka with a thermobaric weapon were published.[26] Ukraine’s General Staff reported that Russian forces were advancing through Avdiivka, capturing many areas in the city.[27]
Casualties
Over 50 civilians have been killed and wounded in the city since the start of the invasion.
On 8 April, one person was killed and another injured by Russian shelling.[28] On 13 April, one civilian was killed and 12 were wounded in Avdiivka.[29] On 2 May, three civilians were killed due to Russian bombardment.[30] On 3 May 2022, according to a news article on Dutch outlet Nos.nl, at least 10 people died and 15 more were injured during an attack on a coking plant. Allegedly, the attack took place after the workers had finished work and were waiting for the bus.[31] On 23 May, Russian shelling and artillery bombarded Avdiivka all night long. Three civilians were injured and 20 houses as well as a kindergarten were damaged severely.[32] On 30 May, one civilian was killed during a street fight in Avdiivka.[33]
References
- ^ "Russian Hybrid Threats Report: Despite debunking of false flags, Putin recognizes breakaway republics". February 22, 2022.
- ^ Adler, Nils. "'There's always danger': Preparing for war on Ukraine's front line". www.aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 2022-03-12. Retrieved 2022-03-30.
- ^ a b "Leader of Neonazi Azov Battalion reportedly killed". The Morning Star. 25 March 2022. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ Sweeney, Steve (March 28, 2022). "Leader of neo-nazi Azov Battalion reportedly killed in Ukraine". Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
- ^ "NEXTA's tweet - "The separatists have lost again In the battles for #Avdeevka, the commander of the second company of the Sparta battalion, Sergey Agranovich, known under the call sign "Vodyanoy", died. " - Trendsmap". www.trendsmap.com.
- ^ "Russia deploys up to 20,000 mercenaries in battle for Ukraine's Donbas region". the Guardian. April 19, 2022.
- ^ Team, Editorial (April 15, 2022). "2,000 foreign mercenaries come to Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia". PravdaReport.
- ^ "5 killed in Russian strikes on eastern Ukraine's Avdiivka". www.timesofisrael.com.
- ^ a b Crosbie, Jack (February 20, 2022). "Their Town Has Been on Ukraine's Front Line for 8 Years. But They Won't Give Up on It Yet". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
- ^ Troianovski, Anton (February 21, 2022). "Putin Orders Troops to Separatist Regions and Recognizes Their Independence". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 21, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
- ^ a b Sahuquillo, María R. (February 24, 2022). "Ready for the worst: Life in the trenches of Ukraine's Donbas region". EL PAÍS English Edition. Archived from the original on 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2022-03-28.
- ^ Carlsson, Mattias; Hammarstrom, Niclas (January 20, 2022). "On the Front Lines of Ukraine's War With Russia". Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
- ^ Losh, Jack. "This Ukrainian City Was Already Battered. Now It's Bracing for War". Archived from the original on 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2022-03-28.
- ^ "Ukraine's largest steel firm says shells hit Avdiivka coke plant". Reuters. March 13, 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2022-03-28 – via www.reuters.com.
- ^ "Russian Military Fail To Take By Storming Popasna, Novotoshkivske, Avdiivka And Mariinka - Armed Forces". 2022-04-18.
- ^ "Ukrainian defenders refuse to surrender". Eagle-Tribune. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
- ^ Rousseau, Daphne. "Ukrainian president: Russia's large-scale offensive in eastern Ukraine has started". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
- ^ Landry, Carole (April 20, 2022). "On the Front Line in the East". The New York Times.
- ^ Schwirtz, Michael (April 20, 2022). "A Ukrainian Town Goes Underground as Russia Assaults the East". The New York Times.
- ^ "Ukrainian town Avdiivka goes underground as Russia assaults the East". The Indian Express. April 21, 2022.
- ^ "В Авдіївці війська РФ застосували фосфорні боєприпаси – голова Донецької ОВА" (in Ukrainian). Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 2022-03-26. Archived from the original on 2022-05-14.
- ^ "Donetsk regional administration: Russia uses phosphorus shells in Avdiivka". Report.az. 2022-04-27. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25.
- ^ "Российские войска обстреляли Авдеевку фосфорными боеприпасами – глава Донецкой ОВА" (in Russian). Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 2022-04-27. Archived from the original on 2022-04-27.
- ^ "Wednesday, May 18. Russia's War On Ukraine: News And Information From Ukraine". Forbes. 2022-05-18.
- ^ "На Донеччині росіяни обстріляли школу забороненими фосфорними боєприпасами. Вона згоріла вщент — ОВА" (in Ukrainian). Hromadske. 2022-05-18.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, April 29". Institute for the Study of War. 2022-04-29. Archived from the original on 2022-05-15.
- ^ "Russian forces have 'upper hand' in Donbas fighting, Ukrainian officials say | Ukraine | the Guardian".
- ^ "One person killed, one wounded in Russian shelling of Avdiivka community". www.ukrinform.net. Archived from the original on 2022-04-09. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
- ^ "Live updates | Zelenskyy: No one can predict length of war". AP NEWS. 2022-05-13. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
- ^ "Nine Civilians Killed by Shelling in Ukraine's Donetsk Region - Local Governor".
- ^ "Explosies en stroomuitval in Lviv • VN: eerste evacués uit Azovstal in Zaporizja". nos.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2022-05-07.
- ^ "Three civilians injured as Russians fire on Avdiivka".
- ^ "Donetsk Oblast: Three civilians killed by invaders in one day".