“The enemy is concentrating its efforts on overturning our Defense Forces in certain areas … launching attacks in the direction of Bakhmut, Avdiyevka and Novopavlivka,” Oleksandr Shtupun, a spokesman for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said on Friday. Bakhmut and Avdiivka have been fighting fiercely for several months, but remain in Ukrainian hands. Several other Ukrainian positions in the Donbas — the eastern region at the heart of Russia’s war in Ukraine — also came under fire Thursday, Shtupun added. Russia is “likely” to step up its offensive operations in eastern Ukraine by redeploying troops from the south after they were forced to retreat from the city of Kherson last week, according to the UK Ministry of Defence. “Following the withdrawal of its forces from the west of the Dnipro River, Russian forces continue to prioritize reconstruction, reorganization and defense preparation in most sectors in Ukraine,” the ministry said in its daily briefing on Friday. “It is possible that Russia will try to eventually redeploy some of the forces recovered from Kherson to strengthen and expand its offensive operations near the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast.”
