Ukraine War Update NEWS (20231031a): Bumper Overnight & Other News
Table of Contents 📖
| Topic ID | Topic Title | Timestamp |
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"Now he walks in, gets the updates, gives the orders and walks out."
Hello Team!
Jonathan opens the video, mentioning it is Halloween and he is not at the top of his game today. He jokes about pulling out his disabled badge if he stumbles over his words.
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Russian Losses
- 870 Russian personnel lost, which is high for the counter-offensive period
- 21 tanks and 29 armoured personnel vehicles lost, indicating the weather may be improving
- 25 artillery systems, 10 MLRS (5x the daily average), and 3 anti-aircraft systems lost
- 21 drones and 32 cruise missiles downed
- 35 vehicles and fuel tanks, and 2 pieces of special equipment destroyed
Equipment Losses
Andrew Perpetua's summary of visually confirmed losses shows near parity between Russian and Ukrainian losses for the day. Notable Ukrainian losses include a damaged British Stormer air defence system, a destroyed Swedish STRV-122 tank (Leopard 2 variant), and a Bradley IFV. The Russians lost a TOS-1A thermobaric launcher, tanks, IFVs, APCs and trucks.
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Drone Warfare
- A Ukrainian drone pilot set a record by disabling a Russian tank 18km behind the front line
- Russians have imposed a 10km "no tank zone" behind the front due to the threat of loitering munitions
- Increasing the range of drones to 22km will force the Russians to keep tanks even further back, impacting logistics and combat effectiveness
- Russians are also using drones effectively, destroying several Ukrainian Bradleys and a Leopard tank
- Ukrainian forces claim a 58% success rate in hitting targets with drones
Penal Battalions in Avdiivka
A Russian instructor describes the poor assault tactics used by penal "Storm Z" units in Avdiivka, who suffer 40-70% irreversible losses due to:
- Insufficient training and poor equipment
- Lack of artillery support, leading to "meat assaults"
- Lack of initiative given to unit commanders
- Units thrown into battle without proper briefing or reconnaissance
- Difficulties evacuating wounded under Ukrainian artillery dominance
The instructor believes these motivated troops are being wasted through irrational use.
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Crimea Strikes
- Russia claims to have shot down 8 Storm Shadow/SCALP cruise missiles over Sevastopol, but provides no evidence. Explosions were reported in the city.
- Ukrainian sources claim an S-300 air defence system and diesel generator were damaged in a strike on a Russian air defence facility near Olenivka, western Crimea.
- Explosions also occurred at Saki airbase, followed by power outages.
Forced Deportation of Ukrainian Children
According to human rights expert Kateryna Rashevska, Russia has sent at least 8,330 Ukrainian children to "re-education camps" in 2023 as part of a strategy to eradicate Ukrainian identity. The actual number may be as high as 20,000. Jonathan hopes the children can be reunited with their families and notes the ICC has issued arrest warrants over this.
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Ukrainian Language Resurgence
A study found that the use of the Ukrainian language is increasing on social media, with 75-80% of Facebook posts and over 90% of Instagram posts now in Ukrainian. This is a significant increase from 2020 when only 15-25% of posts were in Ukrainian. Jonathan believes this growing embrace of the Ukrainian language will help the country establish itself more robustly in the face of Russian cultural aggression.
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Time Magazine Article on Zelensky
Jonathan discusses a controversial Time magazine article about Zelensky's struggles. Key points:
- US public support for aid to Ukraine has declined to 41%
- Zelensky's aides report he is angry and feels betrayed by Western allies
- Some Ukrainian commanders are refusing orders to advance due to lack of personnel and weapons
- Corruption remains a problem in Ukraine, with some officials using it as an excuse to cut aid
- Zelensky admits US political support is waning and shared values no longer sway politicians
Russian War Crimes
- Evidence emerges of Russian soldiers executing Ukrainian POWs with hands tied in Zaporizhzhia
- Russian investigators claim two soldiers from the Far East have been arrested for murdering 9 members of a Ukrainian family in occupied Volnovakha
- The soldiers were identified as contract personnel and the report appears to partially blame the victims
Unrest in Dagestan
Following riots at the Makhachkala airport involving 1,500 people, the head of Dagestan offered detained rioters the chance to "wash away their shame" by joining the war effort in Ukraine. The airport suffered millions of rubles in damage. Putin is receiving detailed reports and will hold a meeting on the situation. Many of the rioters were young males eligible for mobilisation.
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Wrap up
Jonathan apologises for the longer video and having to cover the Time magazine article in depth. He thanks viewers for watching and encourages them to like, subscribe and share the video.
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