Draft:Russian occupation of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast
| Part of Southern Ukraine offensive, part of the Russian invasion of Ukraine | |
 Ukrainian territory never occupied | |
| Date | 1 March 2022–11 May 2022 (2 months, 1 week and 3 days) |
|---|---|
| Location | Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine |
The Russian occupation of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, referred to by the Government of Russia as the " Dnipropetrovsk Military–Civil Administration", refers to a military occupation beginning on 1 March 2022, after Russian forces invaded Ukraine and began capturing and occupying areas of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
The oblast's capital, Dnipro, was not successfully captured by Russian forces during the initial 2022 offensive, but did suffer heavy shelling by Russian artillery. However, other cities did fall under Russian control, including Apostolove, Berezove, Ternove, and Zelenodolsk. On 11 May 2022, Russian forces left the oblast and ended their military occupation.
Occupation
[edit]2022
[edit]On March 1, 2022, a Russian mixed column of up to 35 Russian armored vehicles and 600 soldiers entered Dnipropetrovsk Oblast from the southeast. Sixteen days later, another Russian mixed column of up to 60 Russian armored vehicles and 1,200 soldiers entered Dnipropetrovsk Oblast from the southwest. After confronting the few Ukrainian soldiers in the area, they managed to capture and besiege the first cities along the oblast's border.[1][2][3]
Dnipro
[edit]On March 4, 2022, although the city of Dnipro was not captured by Russian forces, explosions were reported inside the city, one of which severely damaged the Kaidatsky Bridge, which was determined to be an act of Russian sabotage to prevent Ukrainian forces from crossing the Dnieper River.[1][2][3]
Berezove
[edit]On March 1, 2022, the city of Berezove fell under Russian occupation. The same day, statements by civilians inside the city claimed that they had initiated a resistance operation called "Operation Hidden Mortar". Testimony from a city local following the Ukrainian liberation of the city stated that that throughout the occupation of the city, civilians organized themselves at night to use some mortars on the roofs that had been left by the Russian troops to bomb any vehicle approaching the city. The local argued that they used them exclusively at night since during the day the munitions were guarded, and that they used the mortars to bomb the fortifications that the Russian forces were establishing around the city.[3][4]
Zelenodolsk
[edit]On March 16, 2022, the city of Zelenodolsk fell under Russian occupation. Based on the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, Russian forces tortured Ukrainian military personnel inside the city during the occupation. In addition, city infrastructure suffered critical damage due to the intensity of the bombing. When the city was liberated by Ukrainian forces, a warehouse containing Russian tanks and weapons in good condition that civilians gathered throughout the occupation was discovered.[5][6]
Russia's withdrawal
[edit]On 10 March 2022, a Ukrainian counteroffensive began, ending Russian control over localities it held in the south-east of the oblast. As a result, Russia began withdrawing troops from southern Ukraine, including Synelnykove Raion, with Ukrainian forces recapturing occupied settlements in the region.[7][8]
On 10 May 2022, another independent counteroffensive began, ending Russian control over the few remaining localities it held in the south-east of the oblast. Following the fighting, Russia began withdrawing troops from the region, including Kryvyi Rih Raion, and Ukrainian forces began recapturing the remaining occupied settlements in the oblast. On 11 May, Ukrainian officials and locals in the oblast claimed that Russian forces had completely abandoned south-east Dnipropetrovsk Oblast for redeployment to southern Ukraine.[9]
Recapture of the oblast
[edit]After Russian forces withdrew, Ukrainian forces began demining operations in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
On 12 May 2022, Serhiy Lysak, Governor of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, stated that all Russian troops had left the region, but that it was still unsafe due to military equipment and other ammunition left behind by Russian troops after their withdrawal.[10]
Following their withdrawal, Russian forces continued to continue to shell small towns and villages in the oblast due to the existence of Ukrainian weapons depots and fortifications in the area.[11][12]
Russian reoccupation efforts
[edit]Since September 2024, in conjunction with the Pokrovsk and Velyka Novosilka offensives, Russian forces began to gradually re-occupy territory in the southwesternmost part of Donetsk Oblast while moving towards Dnipropetrovsk Oblast with the aim of re-establishing the lost civil-military administration of the oblast in 2022.[13]
In late December, Russian troops advanced to within 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) of the border between Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.[14]
Control of settlements
[edit]
See also
[edit]- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russo-Ukrainian War
- Outline of the Russo-Ukrainian War
- Russian occupation of Crimea
- Russian occupation of Chernihiv Oblast
- Russian occupation of Donetsk Oblast
- Russian occupation of Zaporizhzhia Oblast
- Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast
- Russian occupation of Kyiv Oblast
- Russian occupation of Luhansk Oblast
- Russian occupation of Mykolaiv Oblast
- Russian occupation of Sumy Oblast
- Russian occupation of Zhytomyr Oblast
- Snake Island during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation
- Collaboration with Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russian annexation of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 3, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ a b "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 4, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ a b c "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 7, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Держспецзв'язку". Telegram. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Police of Dnipropetrovsk region collect evidence of Russian war crimes". mvs.gov.ua. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 16, 2024" (PDF). Institute for the Study of War. March 16, 2024.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 14, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 13, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, May 11". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russian troops shell Dnipropetrovsk Oblast with heavy artillery". The Kyiv Independent. 2023-01-28. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russia fires about 100 shells in Nikopol district in a day: dozens of houses damaged". Ukrainska Pravda. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russia uses Grad MLRS to fire on Dnipropetrovsk Oblast". Ukrainska Pravda. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Por qué la pérdida de Velyka Novosilka podría anunciar una nueva retirada del ejército ucraniano en el óblast de Donetsk" [Why the loss of Velyka Novosilka could herald a new withdrawal of the Ukrainian army in Donetsk Oblast]. El Grand Continent (in European Spanish). 2024-11-26. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, December 23, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
- ^ Barros, George; Stepanenko, Kateryna; Bergeron, Thomas. "Interactive Map: Russia's Invasion of Ukraine". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
- ^ Hilsum, Lindsey (27 April 2022). "'I was beaten with an axe': Fleeing Russian-occupied Ukraine". Channel 4 News. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
