Overview
- Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi says additional units, weapons and unmanned systems are being sent as Ukraine increases pressure on the Dobropillia salient to force Russia to disperse.
- Kyiv says its forces are holding the city and conducting a comprehensive operation to destroy and dislodge infiltrators, rejecting Russian claims of encirclement or a blockade.
- Ukrainian special operations units and other security services are engaged in close-quarters fighting, with estimates of 200–400 Russian soldiers embedded in eastern districts using basements and disguises.
- Russia’s Defense Ministry claims to have defeated a Ukrainian special forces team and shared videos purporting to show surrenders, assertions that could not be independently verified and which Ukraine disputes.
- October saw a sharp increase in Russian missile attacks targeting infrastructure, with Ukrainian data indicating the highest monthly overnight missile launches since early 2023 and casualties reported in regional strikes.