Russian forces are avoiding large-scale mechanized assaults in the Tokmak sector, opting for smaller group operations, Chief of Public Relations of the 118th Separate Mechanized Brigade, Dmytro Pelykh, said on national television on Jan 10.
Experts from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) have indicated that Russia may be using the prisoner exchange on 3 January to show that it is "interested in operating within the bounds of international law and norms" against the background of previous abuses against Ukrainian prisoners of war (PoWs) in violation of the Geneva Convention.
The Russians have slightly reduced the number of their infantry attacks, but continue to actively conduct air strikes and artillery shelling of Ukrainian positions for the second day in a row, the Tavria Operational and Strategic Group commander, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, reported on Telegram on Jan. 3.
Ukrainian drone footage revealed another Russian execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) near Robotyne in western Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the Institute for the Study of War reported in their daily assessment on Dec. 27.
“This division is already known for war crimes committed in Ukraine, particularly in Kyiv Oblast,” Yurii Bielousov, an official within the Prosecutor General’s Office, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on Dec. 28.