STATUS UPDATE ON
THE NORTHEASTERN BATTLEFONT
OF THE WAR ON UKRAINE
THE NORTHEASTERN BATTLEFRONTS
ALONG THE RUSSIAN BORDER
ALONG THE RUSSIAN BORDER
KHARKIV
Kharkiv is the second-largest city and municipality in Ukraine. Located in the northeast of the country, it is the largest city of the historic Slobozhanshchyna region. Kharkiv is the administrative centre of Kharkiv Oblast and of the surrounding Kharkiv Raion. The latest population is approximately 1,433,886 (making it slightly smaller than Philadelphia Pennsylvania).
The Battle of Kharkiv is an ongoing military engagement taking place in and around the city of Kharkiv in Ukraine as part of the Eastern Ukraine offensive during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Kharkiv, located just 20 miles south of the Russia-Ukraine border and a predominately Russian-speaking city, is the second largest city in Ukraine and is considered a major target for the Russian military.
The battle has been described as one of the deadliest battles in the invasion, with a Ukrainian presidential adviser describing it as the "Stalingrad of the 21st century."
As of March 22nd:
Russian invaders are amping up artillery strikes in Kharkiv region. 84 artillery strikes have been reported in the past 24 hours. – Head of Kharkiv Regional Administration.
Human Rights Watch identified Russian use of cluster munitions and explosive weapons with wide-area effect in heavily populated areas in Kharkiv, in apparent indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks. Indiscriminate shelling in heavily populated areas violates international humanitarian law and may constitute a war crime
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More than 450 civilians were reportedly killed or injured in the first 11 days of the war, in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, as a result of Russian airstrikes and artillery shelling of populated areas, Human Rights Watch said . The attacks damaged civilian buildings, including apartment blocks, schools, places of worship, and shops, impeding access to food and medicines. They also damaged infrastructure in the city causing civilians to lose vital services such as electricity, heat, and water.
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Earlier Reports from the Assault on Kharkiv
On 24 February, Russian forces amassed in Belgorod crossed the border and began advancing towards Kharkiv, meeting Ukrainian resistance. By 25 February, fierce fighting had broken out in the northern suburbs of the city, near the village of Tsyrkuny, where Ukrainian forces were able to hold against the Russians. In the early morning of 27 February, Russian forces destroyed a gas pipeline in Kharkiv. Ministry of Internal Affairs advisor Anton Herashchenko reporting street fighting was underway in the city center.
By the afternoon of 27 February, reports indicated that Ukrainian forces had regained full control of the city. He added that dozens of Russian soldiers had surrendered, who had complained about demoralization, not understanding what their mission was, and lack of fuel supplies. On 28 February, Terekhov reported that Russian forces were beginning to destroy electrical substations in Kharkiv, resulting in some areas of the city being disconnected from power, heating, and water.
On the morning of 1 March, a Russian missile 3M54-1 Kalibr struck Freedom Square in central Kharkiv, detonating in front of the Kharkiv Oblast administrative building.[37][38][39] The Slovene consulate was destroyed in the blast.[40] An opera house and a concert hall were also damaged.[41] Total casualties of the strike are unclear, with multiple Ukrainian officials reporting varying numbers; at least 7 were killed and at least 24 were wounded.
On 2 March, at least 21 people had been killed and 112 wounded in the previous 24 hours. Russian paratroopers landed in Kharkiv and conducted a raid on a Ukrainian military hospital after an aerial assault on the city, leading to heavy clashes between Russian and Ukrainian forces. Russian missiles later struck Freedom Square again, damaging the Kharkiv City Council building and the Derzhprom, in addition to some high-rise buildings. On the night of 2 March, two missiles struck the headquarters of the Kharkiv Territorial Defense Forces. The Assumption Cathedral, which was being used as a shelter by civilians, was also damaged.
According to police, as of March 4, 188 people had been killed in the battle of Kharkiv, including 122 civilians. In addition, 394 people were wounded, included 290 civlians. The Security Service of Ukraine stated on 6 March that Russian forces were shelling the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology, which houses a nuclear research facility, with truck-mounted Grad launchers, and warned it could lead to a large-scale ecological disaster
SUMY
Sumy is a city in north-eastern Ukraine near the Russia-Ukraine border with a population estimate of 259,660. (roughly the size of Petersburg Florida in the U.S.)
Russian tanks and units began to move into Sumy, on 24 February 2022, and fighting began on the outskirts at 3:00 a.m. The Russian army nearly captured the Ukrainian city of Sumy with little initial resistance. However, Ukrainian soldiers and militia began engaging the Russian forces within the city, resulting in heavy urban fighting.
On 3 March, Dmytro Zhyvytskyi, the governor of Sumy Oblast, stated that five people were injured in shelling on buildings of 27th Artillery Brigade and the military department at Sumy State University. More than 500 international students are trapped since roads and bridges out of the city have been destroyed and fighting has been reported in the streets of Sumy.
As of March 5, the Battle of Sumy was ongoing. Some Russian forces, bypassed Sumy, moving in a western direction reaching Brovary, an eastern suburb of Kyiv.
KONOTOP
On 24 February, Russian forces advancing from the northeast had encircled the city of Konotop and placed it under siege. Ukrainian forces defended their positions from the attack. Russian equipment was reported burning in the city in the morning of 25 February. The Ukrainian army said Russian forces besieging the city were poorly supplied and had retreated.
According to the Ukrainian army, government forces lost control of the city on 25 February.
On 2 March, the mayor of Konotop, stated that Russian forces in the city warned him that they would shell the city if the residents continued resisting them. Later in the day, city authorities began negotiations with Russian forces, with talks lasting 12 minutes. An agreement was reached under which Russian forces accepted not to change the city's government, deploy troops in the city, obstruct transportation, or remove the Ukrainian flag. In return, the city officials agreed that the residents would not attack Russian forces.
Sophia Square in Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine (prior to the Russian Invasion)