Ukraine's forces possibly make breakthrough on Robotyne-Verbove line – ISW
Ukrainian troops continued counter-offensive operations in the west of Zaporizhzhia Oblast on 27 September and reached a line of trenches west of Verbove (16 kilometres southeast of Orikhiv).
Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)
Details: Geolocation footage released on 26 September shows a Russian drone striking Ukrainian infantry in a trench west of Verbove, and Russian use of these drones indicates that Russian forces are probably no longer present in the roughly one-kilometre-long trench west of Verbove.
Vladimir Rogov, the Russian so-called "head" of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, reported on 26 September that at least four Ukrainian companies with a sizable number of armoured vehicles had stormed Russian positions along the Robotyne-Verbove line following heavy fire from artillery.
In response to Rogov, a Russian milblogger who ardently supports Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky of the Russian Airborne Forces (VDV) by attacking the Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD) stated that Ukrainian forces had already passed the minefields and "dragon's teeth" anti-tank fortifications on the Robotyne-Verbove line and that Ukrainian forces would have carried out such attacks sooner or later.
On 26 September, a different Russian military blogger claimed that the intense mutual shelling made ground operations near Verbove and Robotyne dangerous.
Regarding this assertion, yet another military blogger supposedly connected to the VDV Forces responded by claiming to have a direct account from a member of the Russian 108th VDV Regiment (7th VDV Division) stating that there is heavy Ukrainian shelling going on nearby. The 108th VDV Regiment was either departing from Verbove or moving to Verbove, according to the milblogger's source, who gave contradictory details.
In addition, sources said that the Russian military command in Moscow cancelled plans to redeploy the Russian 106th Airborne Division to the Robotyne area to help the 7th and 76th Airborne Divisions operating there.
ISW emphasises that the situation near Verbove remains unclear, since the number of comments from well-known Russian military bloggers has reduced and they are not reporting in detail about Russian activity on this front line.
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