Ukrainian Army: We shot down five Russian planes in the Donetsk region

Over the past 24 hours, we shot down a Russian Su-25 attack plane near Avdiivka in the Donetsk Oblast. This is the fifth enemy machine destroyed by us in this region in just 10 days, said Oleksandr Shtupun, spokesman for the Ukrainian forces in the Taurid region, i.e. in the Zaporizhia Oblast and the western part of the Donetsk Oblast, on Thursday.

The military representative added that the invaders use attack planes to support their ground operations in the Donetsk and Zaporizhia regions. However, whenever possible, the Russians try to avoid operating on sections of the front where they risk being shot down by Ukrainian anti-aircraft forces.

"Su-35 and Su-34 planes are attacking from a distance because (the pilots of these machines) are afraid (to fly closer to our positions)"

Shtupun said, quoted by the Interfax-Ukraine agency.

According to the latest data from the Ukrainian General Staff, since February 24, 2022, i.e., the beginning of the Russian invasion, the enemy has already lost 320 aircraft and 324 combat helicopters.

Avdiivka has been a bone in the Russians' throat since 2014 because from this place the Ukrainians can maintain fire control over occupied Donetsk. The enemy wants to capture Avdiivka because he believes that this city can be our bridgehead for an offensive against Donetsk, noted Ukrainian military expert Oleksiy Hetman in recent days.

Difficult situation in Avdiivka

Due to the escalation of the situation on the front line around Avdiivka, humanitarian aid deliveries to the city have been suspended, said its military mayor, Vitaly Barabash. According to the local government official, supplies in the city should be enough for three months.

Barabash said that for several days, a “certain decrease in the level of tension around Avdiivka” has been observed. There is less shelling and assault activity. "In a sense, we can say that the resistance forces stabilized the situation around the city," he said. At the same time, according to him, the Russians will continue their attack on Avdiivka and are preparing forces for this purpose.

Earlier, Barabash emphasized that the current Russian attack on Avdiivka is the largest not only since the beginning of the current invasion, but since the outbreak of fighting in Donbas in 2014.

Before February 24, 2022, i.e., the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, almost 30,000 people lived in Avdiivka, and before 2014, when the conflict in Donbas broke out - almost 40,000. The city is almost completely destroyed by the aggressor's artillery and aircraft. In March 2023, the Ukrainian authorities estimated that there were less than 2,000 residents left in Avdiivka and urged these people to evacuate.