Partisans Observe Movement of Russian Military Equipment in Occupied Horlivka

The Ukrainian partisan group ATESH reported via Telegram that they had observed the movement of military equipment in the Russian-occupied city of Horlivka in the Donetsk region.

“Our operatives recorded the movement of occupiers’ equipment, including tanks, in Horlivka. Coordinates: 48.312411, 37.980464,” the caption accompanying the video released by the partisans read.

A Ukrainian military officer interviewed by Kyiv Post suggested that the footage likely showed the movement of a Russian BMD amphibious assault vehicle, rather than a tank.

The partisans indicated that they have identified the location where the Russian equipment is stationed and have shared its coordinates with the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF).

“We await prompt action. Our reconnaissance efforts continue to survey all Russian military facilities,” the post stated.

The guerrilla movement considers their mission vital in promptly providing the Ukrainian Defense Forces with useable information to aid in liberating Donetsk and other occupied regions.

Horlivka has been under Russian occupation since 2014.

At the end of last year, it became known that Russia had resumed supplying its troops in eastern Ukraine via the Yasinuvata-Horlivka route.

On Oct. 12, 2023, the AFU disrupted Russian logistics in this direction by targeting a bridge near Panteleimonivka, a village along this route.

The belief that Russia is again using this route and transporting military cargo became apparent from footage aired on Russian television. In a story about fighting in the area of Toretsk, footage showed Russian military transport on a section of that road.

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The Russian transmission claimed that roads near Horlivka had been reinforced with additional concrete fortifications. It stated that if Ukrainian forces attack the route with kamikaze drones, even during the day, any damaged vehicles and equipment are recovered under the cover of electronic warfare systems.

The Donbas Realii media outlet was able to geolocate footage from the Russian video, as a section of the Yasinuvata-Horlivka highway close to the destroyed Panteleimonivka bridge.

In this context, it should be noted that earlier the Ukrainian assault group of the 24th separate mechanized brigade named after King Danyl recaptured one of the tericon slagheaps within Horlivka, believed to belong to the “Gagarina” mine on the city's western outskirts.

“Now our flag is flying over the tericon,” President Volodymyr Zelensky announced, releasing related video footage on Dec. 12, 2023.

In wartime, a slagheap, typically a hill formed from mine waste, takes on great strategic importance, particularly when overlooking the relatively flat battlefield such as that around the city of Horlivka.

A Ukrainian military officer, speaking anonymously to Kyiv Post, emphasized the tactical importance of occupying high ground. Controlling the slag heap provides advantages for radio-electronic warfare, reconnaissance, and UAV operations.

He further noted that controlling the slag heap and its vantage point could be crucial for deploying fire support equipment such as mortars, grenade launchers, and anti-tank missile systems as Ukraine advances further into the city.