Invaders round up additional Smerch batteries and heavy mortars near Izyum - General Staff

DENYS KARLOVSKY — TUESDAY, 3 MAY, 2022, 07:01 PM

The Russian occupiers have moved a battery of heavy "Tulpan" mortars and an additional unit with "Smerch" multiple launch rocket systems from Belgorod region near Izyum.

Source: evening summary of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on 3 May

Quote: "On the Izyum front, the enemy is conducting offensive operations using individual units from the 1st Tank Army, the 20th Combined Arms Army of the Western Military District; the 29th, 35th, 36th Combined Arms Armies and the 68th Army Corps of the Eastern Military District and airborne troops along the Izyum - Barvenkovo frontline.

To support their actions, the occupiers have moved a battery of "Tulpan" heavy self-propelled mortars with a calibre of 240 mm and a unit armed with multiple launch rocket systems ‘Smerch.’"from Belgorod region to the vicinity of ​​the city of Izyum

Details : Russian occupiers continue to inflict artillery and air strikes on Kharkiv. Groupings of the 6th Combined Arms Army of the Western Military District, the 41st Combined Arms Army of the Central Military District, and coastal troops of the Baltic and Northern Fleets are operating on the Slobozhansky front.

In the occupied areas of Kharkiv Oblast, Russian National Guardsmen are subjecting the local population to filtration measures.

In the Donbas, Russian troops continue to advance towards Liman, Slavyansk and Seversk and are trying to seize full control of Rubizhne and Popasna. On separate lines, the Russians have begun to equip a second line of defence.

On the Donetsk and Tauride fronts, there is a grouping of enemy troops, consisting of individual units from the 1st and 2nd Army Corps, the 8th and 58th Combined Arms Armies of the Southern Military District; 5th Combined Arms Army and the Pacific Fleet of the Eastern Military District; the 2nd and 41st Combined Arms Armies and the 90th Tank Division of the Central Military District and airborne troops are conducting offensive operations in a certain section of the frontline.

The enemy has placed temporary warehouses of ammunition, fuel and lubricants, as well as points for the repair of equipment in the occupied territories.

On the Zaporizhzhia front, the Russian invaders have continued to carry out demonstrative actions in order to pull back the Ukrainian troops and prevent them from being transferred to other front lines.

On the Yuzhnobuzh front, the occupiers are conducting combat operations using the forces of the 8th and 49th Combined Arms Armies, the 22nd Army Corps, coastal troops of the Black Sea Fleet of the Southern Military District and airborne troops in order to improve the tactical situation and continue shelling our troops. The occupiers are regrouping troops, building up fire destruction, air defence and logistics systems.

In Transnistria, the Russian task force has been put on high alert. Subdivisions of the armed formations of the Transnistria Moldova Republic (PMR) are serving with enhanced routines. Ukrainian intelligence has noticed signs of preparations for the evacuation of family members of officers of Russian units in the region.

On the northern borders, Belarusian troops continue to carry out activities to cover the border with Ukraine. Near Khmelevka, Sumy region, Ukrainian defenders exposed an enemy sabotage group.

The ships of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation continue to carry out missile strikes against civilian targets in Ukraine, and also to isolate the combat area, conduct reconnaissance and fire support off the coast.

Separately, the General Staff noted that as a result of effective and coordinated actions by units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russian units of the 38th Separate Motorised Rifle Brigade have lost 60% of their personnel.

Background:

• On the morning of May 3, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the Russians had removed 17 tanks and 60 infantry fighting vehicles from long-term storage warehouses in the Voronezh region and transferred them to Ukraine.
• British intelligence reports that the most combat-ready units of the Russian army used in the invasion have suffered significant losses, and it will take years for the Russian Federation to restore these forces, especially in view of the restrictions imposed as part of the sanctions measures.
• Ukrainian defenders have killed, as of 3 May, more than 24 thousand Russian troops, destroyed more than 1060 tanks, more than 470 artillery systems and about 300 unmanned vehicles.