The Ukrainian military on Friday released several videos capturing the first hours of its surprise incursion into southwestern Russia’s Kursk region last week.
One of the videos, nearly two minutes long, shows missile strikes, armored vehicles driving through open fields and residential areas, as well as captured Russian servicemen. Toward the end of the video, Ukrainian soldiers throw a Russian flag to the ground.
“Careful preparation, planning, surprise, morale and information silence were decisive at the initial stage of the operation,” said Ukraine’s elite airborne forces, which published the video on YouTube.
“Now everything depends on the resilience of the Ukrainian soldiers of all branches of the armed forces involved in the operation,” it added.
Ukraine’s 80th air assault brigade shared a separate video on Facebook showing the storming of the Sudzha border crossing in the first hours of their offensive into the Kursk region on Aug. 6.
The video, shot from the air by a drone, captures the moment when Russian soldiers positioned at the border crossing emerge from the rubble of a destroyed building and wave white flags. Ukraine’s military said more than 50 Russian soldiers surrendered there.
“Faced with heavy fire from Ukrainian artillery and seeing Ukrainian tanks on the territory of the border crossing, the Russians made the right decision to hang a white flag and surrender to Ukrainian soldiers,” the 80th air assault brigade said.
Ukraine’s General Staff also shared a video of an interview with an injured 82nd air assault brigade gunner, who recalls the storming of the border. Footage from the Kursk offensive is shown throughout the video.
Kyiv has not given an official count for the number of Russian servicemen its forces have taken prisoner in the 11 days since they stormed across Russia’s border. The Independent cited an unnamed Ukrainian colonel estimating that close to 2,000 Russian soldiers may have been captured.
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