Ukrainians counterattack in Huliaipole after Russians claim the city captured

Today, the biggest news comes from the Huliaipole direction.

Here, after a month of brutal urban fighting, the Russians announced the capture of the main stronghold. However, the Ukrainian command challenged this claim and deployed the elite Skala Regiment to execute a decisive push and a daring counterattack under intense Russian hellfire.

Ukraine’s goal is to counterattack to roll back the Russian push inside the town and re-establish a defensible line inside. Notably, Russia had broken through in this sector and pushed deep into the town, turning it into a grey zone.

As the town is the only major settlement in this direction, it would serve as a staging ground for the Russians if they consolidate their gains, as it would allow the Russians to amass troops and supplies before advancing further west and threatening the last Ukrainian defense line.

This means Ukrainians must prevent or delay Russian capture for as long as possible, because if the price Russians pay is high enough, they won’t be able to quickly capitalize on any local victory. In order to counter the Russian onslaught, the Ukrainian high command decided to dispatch elements from the Skala regiment from Pokrovsk to conduct coordinated and rapid counterattacks.

Their main advantage is the highly skilled personnel throughout the unit, who conduct specialized clearing operations with extremely high coordination between the assaulters, drone units, and commanders. Reconnaissance drone operators are constantly relaying live feed to the Skala commanders, who locate enemy personnel. After the Russians are detected, the commanders dispatch FPV and heavy bomber drones to provide close fire support to suppress the targets, while the ground forces quickly move in and finish them off.

If we take a look at the topographic map, we can see that, among others, the Skala drone operators hold positions on the high ground west of the town, which look down on the town in the lowlands, providing observation points and excellent signal coverage.

Conversely, Russian forces hold the high ground to the south and northeast of the town, which complicates Ukrainian counteroffensive efforts as it allows Russian units to observe and anticipate Ukrainian movements. From the heights, Russians coordinate intense and sustained artillery and MLRS fire, while the Russian Air Force conducts continuous strikes against the town using glide bombs.

As the defenders in the settlement have held back the Russian advance for over a month now, much of the town’s defensive positions have been reduced to rubble. Paradoxically, this nullifies the town’s strategic advantage of being a larger settlement, as the ruins won’t be able to function as a logistics hub for possible future Russian advances.

Nevertheless, constant Russian artillery and aviation strikes make it difficult for the Ukrainians to maintain their positions or conduct counterattacks. However, soldiers of the Skala regiment try to adapt to the situation and move forward only between Russian salvos, in time with their strike rhythm. In practice, they hide in basements until the Russian bombings stop and emerge only for quick clearing operations to limit their exposure by moving along safe routes directed by commanders with a bird’s eye view.

Geolocated footage shows how one of the Skala regiment’s operations unfolded. First, their commanders spotted 2 Russian soldiers in the open with the help of a Ukrainian reconnaissance drone, relaying the information to nearby drone operators.

The Russians were tracked into a building and immediately struck with an FPV, exactly where they were hiding. As they were out of reach for FPV strikes, bomber drones arrived to drop ordinance on the destroyed house to further collapse their cover and prevent them from escaping, while 2 Skala soldiers made themselves ready to take action.

Following the grenade drops, Ukrainian soldiers rapidly advanced to clear the structure and eliminate the disorganized and disoriented Russians in seconds. The rapid actions allowed the Skala soldiers to withdraw to nearby safe positions without casualties, and before a Russian artillery bombardment could be called in.

Overall, Russia advanced into the city but failed to capture it, despite significant resources being used to destroy the defenders. While they previously faced only fierce resistance, they now face coordinated Ukrainian counterattacks by elite Skala soldiers, who have adapted to the battlefield realities in this sector. The importance of this stronghold will force the Russians to reinforce their attack here, either by sacrificing more resources or by risking being pushed back.

Russia will need to deploy more troops and drone countermeasures if it wants to succeed, because its losses are mounting, while Skala soldiers remain too elusive to kill as they advance.