Key developments on Oct. 14:
- Russian Tu-134 transport aircraft set ablaze over 1,000 km from Ukraine, military intelligence claims
- Russia claims capture of Zaporizhzhia Oblast village, Kyiv says 'situation dynamic'
- Over 110,000 residents of Kursk Oblast evacuated, Russia's chief ombudsman claims
- First Ukrainian troops crossed into Kursk Oblast 2 days before incursion, commander says
- Russian drone attack on Kherson Oblast kills 2
A Russian Tu-134 military transport aircraft was set on fire at a military airfield in Orenburg Oblast overnight on Oct. 13, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) reported.
"Such Soviet aircraft are used, in particular, to transport the leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry," HUR said.
According to the agency, the plane, which belonged to the 117th Military Transport Aviation Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces, burned to the ground at the Orenburg-2 military airfield.
The airfield is located 6 kilometers (3 miles) southwest of the Russian city of Orenburg. The city lies roughly 1,250 kilometers (780 miles) from the front line in Ukraine and 90 kilometers (60 miles) north of the Russia-Kazakhstan border.
HUR shared footage of the fire without claiming responsibility for the incident.
"Every crime against the Ukrainian people will be duly punished," the agency added.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify the report.
The Tupolev Tu-134 is a twin-engined airliner produced in the Soviet Union from 1966-89. Following the crash of a Tu-134 in 2011, which killed 47 people, it was fully withdrawn from commercial service in 2019.
VIP private jet versions are still available to buy in Russia, with one currently listed online at $2.5 million.
Kateryna Denisova
Russia claims capture of Zaporizhzhia Oblast village, Kyiv says 'situation dynamic'
Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Oct. 14 that its forces had captured the village of Levadne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast amid ongoing hostilities in the sector.
The statement came after Kyiv's warnings of a potential Russian push in the southern Zaporizhzhia Oblast just as Moscow's troops continue advancing in Ukraine's east. According to reports, Russian troops renewed attacks in the Zaporizhzhia sector in recent days.
Vladyslav Voloshyn, the Southern Defense Forces spokesperson, refuted in a comment for the Kyiv Independent that Russia had launched a major offensive in the sector, saying that Russia is only carrying out local ground assaults.
When asked about the alleged seizure of Levadne, Voloshyn said that the situation "is developing quite dynamically" and that each side can regain the initiative.
Levadne is located west of the village of Velyka Novosilka, some 170 kilometers (105 miles) from the city of Zaporizhzhia.
In recent weeks, Russian troops have intensified attacks against Zaporizhzhia, targeting its civilian infrastructure with guided aerial bombs.
Voloshyn warned that Moscow is "amassing personnel" in Zaporizhzhia Oblast on Sept. 28. The spokesperson said then that Russia is readying a new maneuver near the occupied village of Pryiutne close to Levadne but added that a full-blown offensive would require larger numbers.
On Oct. 5, Voloshyn said that Russian forces are massing for a breakthrough in the direction of Orikhiv and Mala Tokmachka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The area was the main axis of Ukraine's southern counteroffensive in 2023, which led to the liberation of the settlement of Robotyne but achieved no major breakthrough.
Sonya Vseliubska
Over 110,000 residents of Kursk Oblast evacuated, Russia's chief ombudsman claims
Some 112,337 residents of Russia's Kursk Oblast left their homes due to hostilities, Russian Ombudsman Tatyana Moskalkova said in an interview published on Oct. 14, citing the country's Emergency Ministry.
After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, authorities in Russian border regions have often reported Ukrainian strikes as the hostilities spilled across the border.
The evacuation efforts intensified after Kyiv's cross-border incursion in Kursk Oblast in early August.
Speaking to the Kremlin-controlled outlet Argumenty i Fakty, Moskalkova said that this number includes 12,328 people placed at temporary facilities across Russia and around 100,000 living with relatives and friends.
Around 40,000 people refused to evacuate or had already returned to their residences, the official added.
Overall, 30,415 residents of Belgorod and Kursk regions and other territories near the Russia-Ukraine border were placed at 960 temporary accommodation facilities across Russia, Moskalkova claimed. This number includes 7,670 children, she added.
The official alleged this figure encompasses residents who "fled" Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts two years ago "due to shelling."
The Kyiv Independent could not verify Moskalkova's claims as Russia has carried out forced deportations of Ukrainian residents of occupied territories, including children.
Ukraine launched its cross-border incursion into Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6, claiming to initially seize some 1,300 square kilometers (500 square miles) but recently facing mounting pressure from growing Russian reinforcements.
Kyiv said it would adhere to international humanitarian law in its conduct toward Russian civilians in Kursk Oblast, inviting the U.N. and the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to "join humanitarian efforts." The Kremlin has dismissed the move as "provocation."
Martin Fornusek
First Ukrainian troops crossed into Kursk Oblast 2 days before incursion, commander says
Soldiers of Ukraine's 80th Air Assault Brigade crossed into Kursk Oblast two days before Kyiv launched its operation in the Russian region, aiding the subsequent offensive, Pavlo Rozlach, the brigade's commander, said in an interview with the TSN news program aired on Oct. 13.
According to Rozlach, one Ukrainian company sneaked into Kursk Oblast in groups of six soldiers and hid in the forest. Ukraine's Special Operations Forces helped them to cross the border.
When the operation began, the company attacked a Russian stronghold near the border. The successful operation paved the way for the entry of Ukrainian vehicles, the commander said.
Ukraine also disrupted Russia's communication system, which disoriented Russian forces, he added.
"There were certain risks. If the enemy had found this company, the element of surprise would have been lost," Rozlach said.
Afterward, two battalions reportedly broke through minefields thanks to engineers and kept on advancing in Kursk Oblast.
Following recent attacks by Russian forces against the Ukrainian salient in Kursk Oblast, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukrainian soldiers are holding the line despite Russian attempts to break through.
Moscow has transferred around 50,000 soldiers from other sectors of the front to Kursk Oblast, Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Oct. 10.
James Beardsworth
Russian drone attack on Kherson Oblast kills 2
A Russian attack on Kherson Oblast using a first-person view (FPV) drone on Oct. 14 killed two women in their car, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said.
Ukraine liberated the southern city of Kherson from Russian occupation in November 2022. Since then, Russian troops have regularly attacked the city and nearby areas along the western bank of the Dnipro River.
In recent weeks, residents of Kherson have reported an increase in indiscriminate Russian attacks using FPV drones on civilian targets in the city and other parts of the oblast, referring to the apparently new strategy as a "human safari."
The most recent incident occurred near the town of Beryslav, located some 75 kilometers east of the city of Kherson, the regional prosecutor's office said.
A civilian vehicle with five people inside was targeted with an FPV drone, killing two women aged 72 and 56, as well as injuring a 72-year-old man and a 63-year-old woman.
The driver of the vehicle was unharmed, the Interior Ministry said.
Zarina Zabrisky
