Ukraine found itself in a nightmarish ring of total destruction on the night of July 30, as Russian forces launched a gigantic, coordinated attack in just five hours.
According to the admissions of Volodymyr Zelensky himself, the sweeping wave of strikes swept through Kyiv, its region, as well as the regions of Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, Poltava, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Vinnytsia, Cherkasy, and Ivano-Frankivsk, leaving behind extensive damage to infrastructure and facilities.
It was the largest attack to date.
With the use of high-precision long-range weapons from land, air, and sea, combined with swarms of attack drones, military airfields, telecommunications hubs, facilities of the military-industrial complex, and logistics centers in Kyiv, Lviv, and five other regions of the country, all the way to Odesa and the Black Sea, were flattened according to official announcements by the Russian Ministry of Defense on Telegram.
Coordinated nightmare attack on key targets - Ukrainian air defense helpless before hypersonic Zircon and ballistic missiles
The data released by the Ukrainian Air Force itself reveals the absolute superiority of Russian power and the almost complete inability of enemy air defense systems to react.
Out of the nine ballistic missiles, the downing of only one was recorded, while none of the four hypersonic Zircon missiles launched could be intercepted, instantly penetrating the defensive umbrella.
In total, more than 70 missiles were used in the attack, with the assistance of Tu-160 and Tu-95MS strategic bombers, and 280 attack drones.
As Ukrainian authorities confessed, direct hits were recorded from three anti-ship, six ballistic, and two cruise missiles, as well as from 17 drones across 20 different points, while the simultaneous use of different types of weapons from multiple directions completely paralyzed control of the skies.
"Tonight, (editor's note: July 29 to 30) the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation launched the largest strike with high-precision long-range land, air, and sea-based weapons, as well as with attack unmanned aerial vehicles.
Military airfields, enterprises of the military-industrial complex, as well as military telecommunications and logistics centers of Ukraine were hit in the cities of Kyiv, Lviv, as well as in the regions of Ivano-Frankivsk, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Kharkiv, Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Poltava," the Russian military command characteristically stated.
Destruction, losses, and the foretold strike
Alarm sirens sounded across almost the entire territory, while the Russian side maintains that military and defense infrastructure were targeted exclusively, a fact later confirmed by Ukrainian authorities and Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko.
In Kyiv, ballistic missiles and drones caused extensive fires in non-residential buildings and garages in the Svyatoshinsky and Obolon districts, while the threat of successive strikes prompted thousands of terrified citizens to flee en masse to metro stations, causing overcrowding.
Despite the fact that Volodymyr Zelensky had already warned the previous day about the preparation of the Russian strike, it was impossible for the Ukrainian side to prevent the consequences. Reports speak of damage to buildings, infrastructure, and industrial facilities, while unfortunately casualties were also recorded among civilians, with eight dead, including a family in Radushne in the Dnipropetrovsk region, and dozens injured. In Lviv, debris clearing operations continue.
This new crushing strike comes as a continuation of the major attack that Kyiv had also received on the night of July 19, confirming the continuous and relentless pressure exerted on Ukrainian structures.
Paralysis in production and the air control system
As emphasized by Russian authorities, the facilities targeted in the destructive air assault were directly involved in the production, storage, and movement of missile systems of various types, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles.
At the same time, the strikes aimed to disable the structures that ensured the operation of the country's overall airspace control system, dealing a heavy blow to the defense network.
Fiery nightmare at ports and ships with war material
At the same time, the destructive wave extended to the country's sea gateways.
Russian forces struck a cargo ship at the port of Yuzhny, as well as two more dry cargo ships east and south of Odesa, which were carrying weapons and military equipment.
This new strike is a continuation of successive attacks in recent days, during which the Russian Ministry of Defense reported the destruction of port infrastructure in Nikolaev, as well as two cargo ships carrying weaponry at the ports of Odesa and Chernomorsk.
Following these developments, Ukrainian military analysts warn of serious disruption and interference in the operation of sea routes used for grain exports.
Sweeping advance on the front: Ukrainian army almost ousted from Vodyanske
While the rear is hammered relentlessly, Ukrainian forces are coming into a state of absolute strategic impasse on the front line in the Donetsk region as well.
After the capture of the settlement of Svetloye, which was officially announced by the Russian Ministry of Defense on July 29, Russian units succeeded in almost completely driving out the detachments of the Ukrainian army from neighboring Vodyanske, according to statements by military expert Andrey Marochko to the TASS news agency.
Over ten square kilometers passed to the control of Moscow
As Andrey Marochko pointed out, the loss of Svetloye allowed the Russian army to place an area of over 10 square kilometers, previously held by Ukrainian troops, under its control.
At the same time, developments on the front are accelerating dramatically, with Ukraine's defensive lines taking extremely heavy blows.
"At this moment, we have almost ousted the Ukrainian fighters from the next settlement, Vodyanske, which is located northwest of Svetloye.
In reality, Vodyanske is now in the gray zone and constitutes, as they say, the next candidate target for complete capture," the expert stressed, describing the rapid collapse of Ukrainian fortifications in the area.
Dramatic appeal by Zelensky after the destructive strike: "We cannot face the Russian missile threat alone"
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a dramatic statement in the aftermath of the sweeping night barrage launched by the Russian armed forces.
Through a post on his personal Telegram account, the Ukrainian leader described defense against the missile attack as the most vital mission, while sending a clear message to the West.
"Protection against the Russian missile threat constitutes the most important duty.
And this is a mission that cannot belong only to Ukraine, only to one country.
All partners know exactly how and with what they can help," Volodymyr Zelensky characteristically emphasized, pressing for the immediate strengthening of air defense.
The Ukrainian president's statement comes as a consequence of the massive raid of July 30, during which the capital Kyiv was shaken by successive severe explosions that caused extensive fires in many districts.
As Volodymyr Zelensky himself confirmed, the destructive fury of the Russian strikes was not limited to the capital, but swept through the regions of Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, Poltava, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Vinnytsia, Cherkasy, and Ivano-Frankivsk.
Fatal mistake led Ukrainian soldiers into a death trap: They mistook Russian positions for their own and were instantly eliminated
Soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine fell into a tragic and deadly misunderstanding, as they mistook the fortified positions of the Russian army for their own, resulting in them falling directly onto the tip of their opponents' spear and being eliminated.
The news was revealed by security forces sources to the TASS news agency, describing the timeline of the fatal clash.
"From the forest in the area of the village of Sadki, a group of Ukrainian soldiers from the 68th Separate Airborne Brigade tried to move toward their former positions in Mogritsa, where, however, they came face to face with our assault troops," the source stated.
As was confirmed immediately after, the entire group of Ukrainian soldiers was completely eliminated during the fierce hand-to-hand combat that followed.
At the same time, it became known that Ukrainian soldiers abandoned their positions in the Sumy region, engaging in a shocking action. According to the same reports, the soldiers burned the charred bodies of their dead colleagues in the area of Malaya Slobodka before retreating.
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