UPDATE 17:20 – Vladimir Putin commands Wagner fighters to pledge allegiance to Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Wagner fighters to sign an oath of allegiance to the Russian state, following a deadly plane crash believed to have killed Evgeny Prigozhin, the head of the mercenary group, according to Reuters, as reported by Mediafax.
Putin’s introduction of a mandatory oath for Wagner employees and other private military contractors was a clear move to bring such groups under stricter state control.
UPDATE 15:00 – At least one person was killed and another injured in Russian attacks on the Zaporizhia region in the past day, according to Yuriy Malashko, the head of the region’s military administration.
“In the past day, the enemy has fired 85 times at 26 settlements in the Zaporizhia region,” Malashko said in a Telegram post.
“Unfortunately, a 58-year-old resident of Mala Tokmachka was killed,” he said, adding that a 59-year-old man was also injured during the bombings of the village. (CNN)
UPDATE 12:00 – The Russians are attempting to advance in the area of Novoekhorivka and have become more active near the town of Bilohorivka, reported Artem Lisohor, the governor of the Luhansk region.
According to him, for three days, Russian troops have been continuously trying to move towards Novoekhorivka. “Our defenders are repelling all these attempts by the enemy, causing losses both in terms of military personnel and equipment. However, the Russians do not cease the pressure on this sector of the front. They have intensified their actions in the Bilohorivka area,” the official noted. The head of the Luhansk region added that Russian invaders had shelled Nevske, Bilohorivka, Nadiia, and Tverdohlibove with artillery. Moreover, the Russians carried out air attacks on Tverdohlibove and Makiivka.
UPDATE 11:00 – Russia announces on Saturday that it has shot down two Ukrainian drones – one near Moscow and one in Belgorod, a region on the border with Ukraine – in the context of a multiplicity of attacks of this type on Russian territory, according to AFP.
UPDATE 10:00 – The Ukrainian military intelligence agency GUR announced that it hit a Russian military base in Crimea with drones on Friday, and residents in the area reported casualties, explosions, and road closures, according to Reuters.
Newly emerged images on social media show a major assault by the Ukrainian army on the front line in Roboatine, a locality recently liberated by Kiev’s forces. Ukrainians attacked with at least 80 armored vehicles.
On the Crimean front as well, the forces from Kiev carried out a massive attack. Dozens of Ukrainian drones were shot down over the peninsula annexed by Russia. The Russian Ministry refused to provide information about possible damage or casualties resulting from the destruction of the devices.
The situation is becoming increasingly tense for the Kremlin. A pro-Kiev Russian group has urged Wagner mercenaries to switch sides and avenge the deaths of both Evgeny Prigozhin and their commander, Dmitry Utkin.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has discussed with his American counterpart Joe Biden the training of Ukrainian pilots for F-16 aircraft. The Pentagon recently announced that training will begin in September.
The information was first made public by a Twitter account specializing in open-source intelligence (OSINT). The account shared a video of a Ukrainian M2A2 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) operating outside of Robotyne.
pic.twitter.com/Md2tRse1bR— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) August 25, 2023
