On 27 December, Ukraine's Military Intelligence (HUR) reported that Ukrainian forces killed three Russian army captains in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
HUR, the Security Service of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ drone units, and the Tavria operational military grouping took part in the operation.
The intelligence agency obtained information about a planned meeting of officers from the 4th Guards Military Base of the Russian forces in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
The HUR developed an operation plan, which was later supported by other agencies. As soon as the Russian field briefing began, Ukrainian forces struck the gathering of occupiers and their equipment with HIMARS. When the evacuation group arrived, Ukrainian strike drones attacked the Russians.
The successful operation took down:
- Captain Dmytro Nahornyi, commander of the 1st Battalion of the 135th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces
- Captain Hryhorii Krokhmaliov, deputy chief of staff for intelligence and chief of intelligence for the 135th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces
- Captain Yurii Fomin, commander of the anti-aircraft battery of the 4th Guards Military Base of the Russian Armed Forces
Additionally, Ukrainian soldiers destroyed five Russian military vehicles.
Earlier, HUR said a unit of a Russian An-72 military transport plane blew up at the Ostafyevo airfield in Moscow Oblast.
The An-72 is a Soviet transport aircraft, developed by Antonov, Ukraine’s largest aircraft manufacturing company. The plane is used mainly by the military. The Ostafyevo airfield is located over 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from Ukraine’s border.
Ukrainian intelligence reports destruction of An-72 Aircraft at airbase in Moscow Oblast
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