Victory Chronicles-DAY 649

According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, there were 68 combat engagements on December 3. The enemy launched 1 missile and 45 air strikes, as well as firing 49 times from multiple rocket launchers at Ukrainian troops and localities. 

Consequently, civilians were killed and injured, and civilian infrastructure was destroyed or damaged. The Russian occupiers conducted 1 air strike using a guided missile and 12 attack UAVs, of which Ukrainian air defense forces destroyed 10. On December 4, the enemy launched another attack using a guided missile and 21 attack UAVs, of which 16 drones and one missile were destroyed. 

Air strikes took place in various locations in Luhansk, Donetsk, and Kherson Oblasts. Artillery fire targeted over 130 settlements in several regions. The enemy maintains a military presence in Russian regions bordering Ukraine and is increasing the density of minefields along the border. 

Ukrainian troops successfully repelled enemy attacks across different sectors, inflicting losses on the enemy and consolidating new positions. Ukrainian Air Force and missile forces also conducted strikes on enemy targets.

According to a new estimate by the British Ministry of Defense’s intelligence community, the Russian forces and mercenaries likely suffered significant losses in the war in Ukraine. From February 2022 to November 2023, it is believed that the official forces of the Russian Ministry of Defense suffered between 180,000 and 240,000 wounded, as well as around 50,000 killed. Additionally, Wagner’s mercenaries are estimated to have had 40,000 wounded and 20,000 killed. Overall, the total losses for the Russian side are estimated to be between 220,000 and 280,000 wounded, with approximately 70,000 killed. This puts the total losses for Russian fighters at a range of 290,000 to 350,000 individuals, with a median estimate of 320,000. The report notes that even Russian officials may have a limited understanding of the actual casualty figures due to a culture of inaccurate reporting in the armed forces.

After a Russian missile attack on Novohrodivka, Donetsk Oblast, on the night of November 30, 2023, the body of a little girl was found this morning under the rubble. Her parents have not yet been found. The head of the Novohrodivka military administration, Oleksandr Shevchenko, reported this.

“Search and rescue operations continue at the site of the shelling of a residential building in the center of Novohrodivka. On December 4, 2023, the body of a girl was pulled from the rubble. Her parents, who probably remain under the rubble, have not yet been found,” Shevchenko wrote.

Russian troops in Luhansk are left without an oil depot. “It burned down last night. It did not withstand the attack of a drone. Neither did the air defense of the occupying forces. An unknown drone bypassed all possible means of electronic warfare and hit the oil heart of the so-called “Luhansk People’s Republic”. It exploded loudly and burned brightly. Thousands of Luhansk residents woke up and first heard and then saw it. The invaders are increasingly realizing that it is now dangerous for them to stay or store anything, even in the deep rear, because the Ukrainian Armed Forces are there,” the Luhansk Oblast military administration reported. 

Ukrainian officials appealed to international organizations to investigate video footage published on December 2 showing Russian forces killing surrendering and reportedly unarmed Ukrainian soldiers. A Russian source published footage on December 2 showing Russian forces shooting two Ukrainian soldiers after they surrendered near Stepove (3km northwest of Avdiivka).

Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada Human Rights Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets appealed to the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations to investigate this violation of international law, and Ukrainian Tavriisk Group of Forces Spokesperson Colonel Oleksandr Shtupun stated on December 3 that Ukrainian authorities will give the evidence of the war crime to the appropriate international institutions.

The Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office stated that the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has begun a pre-trial investigation for criminal proceedings for violations of the Ukrainian Criminal Code. A few Russian milbloggers dismissed the video and the accusations against the Russian forces.

Attacking soldiers recognized as hors de combat, specifically including those who have clearly expressed an intention to surrender, is a violation of Article 41 of the Geneva Convention on the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts.

Junior Sergeant Oleh Rzhypetskyi, with the call sign Kum, died on August 23, 2023, near the village of Nevelske, Donetsk Oblast. He was fatally wounded by an explosive while conducting combat operations. On August 17, the defender turned 27. Oleh was born and lived in the village of Chernyatyn, Vinnytsia Oblast. He graduated from the Kalynivka vocational school №21, where he received a gas and electric welding diploma. In civilian life, he worked at a gas station, repairing cars and welding. The platform of stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine – the Heroes Memorial – tells Oleh’s story.

During the full-scale Russian invasion, the man joined the ranks of the defenders. Since June 2022, he has served in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. After returning, he studied in the UK and was appointed a grenade launcher of the 59th separate infantry brigade named after Yakiv Handziuk; he fought in the Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Donetsk Oblasts. He was awarded the medal “For Merit”.

“A loyal and loving son, brother, beloved husband, devoted friend, sincere, open-minded,” said the deceased’s mother, Larysa. The defender was buried in his home village. Oleh is survived by his parents, wife, brothers, other relatives, friends and fighters-in-arms.

• • US funding for Ukraine set to run out by end of the year, White House warns
  • Ukraine develops new modification of Neptune missile system
  • German-made Gepard systems prove to be best at shooting down drones
  • Ukrainian partisans claim to infiltrate Russia’s marines in Sevastopol and detect equipment in Feodosia
  • NYT: Nearly 200 inmates left a high-security Russian prison to join the war in Ukraine, seeking redemption, money or freedom