Victory Chronicles-DAY 672

In yesterday’s attack on Kherson’s railway station in Ukraine, the Russian army caused casualties and damage. The attack took place during the evacuation of approximately 140 civilians who were waiting for a train to depart. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described it as a difficult day and mentioned that the number of victims was still being determined. 

Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko provided further details, stating that a police lieutenant was killed and two other police officers and two civilians were injured by shrapnel during the operation. 

Ukrzaliznytsia, the national railway company, reported that the strike had damaged the station and rolling stock. Plans were made to stabilize the situation, transfer people to buses, and provide additional train cars to ensure the safe evacuation of passengers. The situation was reported to be under control, and the railroad was ready to resume operations.

According to Vadim Gutzeit, the president of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, over 400 Ukrainian athletes have been killed since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Gutzeit expressed his frustration with Russia’s complaints about participating in the Olympics without their flag, questioning the fairness of the situation when Ukraine is experiencing a full-scale war. He also highlighted that Ukraine has lost about 500 sports facilities, further exacerbating the challenges faced by the country. Gutzeit shared that Russia used to send around 300-350 athletes to the Olympics, but if they are now allowed to participate under a neutral flag, their representation would be significantly reduced to 50-80 individuals.

According to satellite imagery from Planet.com, another ship, in addition to the Novocherkassk, partially sank as a result of a strike on the port of Feodosia in occupied Crimea. The image shows that this ship is marked with a yellow rectangle. The identity of the ship has been determined to be an old UTS-150 training ship, which has been observed in photos of the port since at least 2007. The strike was carried out by Ukraine and occurred on the night of December 26. This latest discovery adds to the damage already caused by the attack on the port. The satellite image provides a visual representation of the impact of the strike and highlights the extent of the damage in the area.

Ukrainian rescuers from Kurakhovo are extinguishing fires under constant enemy fire. “The shelling here does not stop for a day. The aggressor targets critical infrastructure and residential buildings, and rescuers are working around the clock to eliminate the consequences of the shelling. The enemy often targets rescuers during their work,” reports the official channel of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.

Ukrainian forces conducted a successful missile strike that destroyed a Russian Black Sea Fleet (BSF) vessel and potentially damaged port infrastructure in occupied Feodosia, Crimea on December 26. Ukrainian military officials reported that Ukrainian air force aircraft conducted a strike on the BSF’s Novocherkassk Ropucha-class landing ship in occupied Feodosia with unspecified cruise missiles.

Geolocated footage from the strike shows that Ukrainian forces struck the Novocherkassk, causing most of it to burn and sink. The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) claimed that the Novocherkassk suffered “damage” while “repelling” a Ukrainian strike. Ukrainian Air Force Spokesperson Colonel Yuriy Ihnat stated on December 26 that the Ukrainian strike possibly also damaged surrounding port infrastructure and other nearby Russian support vessels.

Ihnat noted that the only missiles that Ukrainian forces possess that are capable of conducting long-range strikes are SCALP and Storm Shadow missiles, heavily insinuating that one or the other of these kinds of missiles were used in the strike. Ihnat also stated that Russian forces continue to use various short, medium, and long-range air defense systems and that Ukrainian pilots employ specific tactical techniques to ensure the maximum number of strikes reach their target. 

A Russian milblogger claimed that units of the 31st Air Defense Division, which are operating S-400 air defense systems in Feodosia, failed to identify two Ukrainian cruise missiles. United Kingdom Defense Secretary Grant Schapps stated that Ukrainian forces have destroyed 20 percent of the BSF over the past four months. ISW continues to assess that Ukrainian strikes on BSF assets have forced the Russian military to move BSF assets to the eastern part of the Black Sea on an enduring basis.

Senior fighter Oleksandr Petrovych died on August 19, 2023, near the village of Petropavlivka, Kupiansk district, Kharkiv Oblast. The warrior was 32 years old.

Oleksandr was born in the village of Kut, Chernivtsi Oblast. He studied at the Law Faculty of Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University. He worked as a driver and loved traveling and meeting new people. With the outbreak of a full-scale war, on March 8, 2022, the man joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine to defend his homeland and family from the enemy. He served in the 115th separate mechanized brigade. He was a driver of a machine gun platoon.

“Sashko was the best husband, a loving son, a loyal friend and fighters-in-arms, he always helped and supported everyone in difficult situations,” said his wife, Tetiana. The defender was buried in his native village. Oleksandr is survived by his wife, mother and brother. 

*Oleksandr’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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