On Thursday, Russia's 155th Naval Infantry Brigade counterattacked in Kursk Oblast and overran a team of lightly armed Ukrainian drone operators. Rather than taking the nine operators captive, the Russians stripped the Ukrainians, then shot them in their heads, killing all. The Russian brigade beheaded four Ukrainians back in August and displayed the severed heads on poles. Ukraine’s air assault brigades have been deliberately hunting down members of the Russian 155th Naval Infantry Brigade, and exacting revenge.
On Thursday, Russian marines from the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade counterattacked along the western edge of the Ukrainian-held salient in Russia’s Kursk Oblast. Advancing toward a string of villages, including Zelenyi Shlyakh, the marines overran a team of lightly armed Ukrainian drone operators.
Rather than taking the nine operators captive, as dictated by international law, the Russians stripped the Ukrainians, ordered them to lie face down on the ground and then shot them in their heads, apparently killing all of them.
It was just the latest in an escalating campaign of terror by Russian troops. According to Ukrainian authorities, Russian forces have executed more than 100 surrendering Ukrainians in the 31 months since Russia widened its war on Ukraine—most of them this year.
Throughout history, the summary execution of prisoners of war by one side in a conflict has provoked the other side to respond with equal brutality. So it’s unsurprising that, in the days since the Russian marines murdered those Ukrainian drone operators, some of Ukraine’s most aggressive units—its air assault brigades—have been deliberately hunting down members of the Russian 155th Naval Infantry Brigade, and exacting revenge.
Since last week’s atrocity, imagery of which was widely shared on social media, the Ukrainian 82nd and 95th Air Assault Brigades, respectively holding positions southeast and southwest of the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade’s own positions in Kursk Oblast, have ambushed Russian marines.
If the Ukrainian brigades took prisoners, there’s no evidence of it. There is evidence they killed at least a few 155th Naval Infantry Brigade marines, however. “The same fate will await other soldiers from this brigade,” the Ukrainian air assault forces stated.
It’s worth noting that Ukrainian troops hate the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade more than they hate most Russian units. The Russian brigade allegedly beheaded four Ukrainians back in August and displayed the severed heads on poles—behavior usually associated with Islamic terror groups. Ukrainian troops everywhere are eager for opportunities to do battle with the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade.
Isolated cases of bloody revenge don’t amount to a coordinated military strategy, of course. Ukrainian paratroopers may strike back at small groups of Russian marines, but that doesn’t mean they’ll defeat the whole Russian force.
Nine weeks after a strong Ukrainian force invaded Kursk Oblast and quickly seized 400 square miles of Russian territory, Russian brigades and regiments including the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade are counterattacking—and slowly chipping away at the Ukrainian salient, especially on its western edge.
“Russian troops have been geolocated as far as Zelenyi Shlyakh, where they have possibly also retaken some fortifications they lost in August,” reported Emil Kastehelmi, an analyst with the Blackbird Group. “Stabilizing the situation seems difficult. Ukraine has lost roughly a third of what they controlled in Kursk at the beginning of September.”
The terrain around Zelenyi Shlyakh is flat and mostly treeless—conditions that would normally favor a dug-in defender. But the terrain actually made it difficult for the Ukrainian invaders to prepare good fortifications. “The size of the area allows it to be monitored more effectively with Russian UAVs, and destroying any engineering equipment is likely a priority for the Russians,” Kastehelmi explained.
So Ukrainian troops on the western edge of the Kursk salient—including those murdered drone operators—have been vulnerable to attacking Russian forces in the sectors where the Russians have managed to concentrate more firepower.
As long as the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade is fighting on favorable terrain, it may continue advancing—and may overrun more Ukrainian positions. But don’t expect the Ukrainians to give up, even when outnumbered and outgunned. Now that the Russian brigade has a reputation for brutalizing prisoners, any Ukrainian troops the brigade overruns are likely to fight to the death.
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