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All rights reserved Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker The Bellingcat Investigation Team is an award winning group of volunteers and full time investigators who make up the core of the Bellingcat's investigative efforts The Bellingcat Investigation Team has determined conclusively that the artillery attack on the Ukrainian town of Mariupol on 24 January 2015 which resulted in at least 30 civilian deaths and over 100 injuries Bellingcat has also determined that the shelling operation was instructed directed and supervised by Russian military commanders in active service with the Russian Ministry of Defense Bellingcat has identified nine Russian officers involved directly with the military operation Bellingcat has determined that two artillery batteries of Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS) were transported from Russia into Ukraine the day before the Mariupol operation these batteries were deployed near the village of Bezimenne exclusively for the shelling of targets in and around Mariupol after which they were repatriated back into Russia In the course of analyzing the events in the eve of and on 24 January 2015 Bellingcat has also identified two Russian generals involved with the selection and assignment of Russian artillery specialists to commanding roles in eastern Ukraine This investigation was made possible due to access to raw video and audio data that is being submitted by the Ukrainian government to the International Court of Justice as part of an ongoing legal case This data was made available to a small group of international investigative media for the purposes of independent assessment Bellingcat and its media partners analyzed a large volume of intercepted calls from and to participants in the armed conflict located in the area of Bezimenne at the time of shelling Bellingcat conducted detailed cross-referencing of events and voice samples from public statements of some of the identified persons A detailed analysis permitted the identification of persons and military units and the reconstruction of events leading up to the shelling of residential areas in Mariupol including the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine report from 24 January 2015 have identified that shelling of Mariupol’s residential areas came from separatist-controlled territory Bellingcat’s investigation is the first to fully detail and identify the role of active Russian military units as well as the direct commanding role of active Russian army officers in this military operation Our full report identifying the nine Russian officers involved with the military operation that led to the deaths of 30 Ukrainian civilians in Mariupol will be published later this week we are revealing the names of these individuals along with a sampling of the telephone conversations that led to their identification The Russian officers who were in charge on high and lower levels of the MLRS batteries on the day of the shelling at Mariupol or provided target instructions from another location in Eastern Ukraine The Russian officers who were in charge of selecting and sending artillery commanders and artillery equipment to Eastern Ukraine have been identified by Bellingcat as: The two Russian and Ukrainian militants in direct charge of the artillery units that shelled Mariupol have been identified by Bellingcat as: Our full investigation, with biographical details on each of these men, our research process, and our analysis of the shelling attack itself, will be published later this week. Bellingcat worked on this report with its investigative partner McClatchy. 20221:54 PM UTCMariupol defenders surrender to Russia but their fate is uncertainUkrainian officials declined to comment publicly on the fate of fighters who had made their last stand at the Azovstal steelworks plant holding out as Mariupol was taken over by Russian forces [1/30]A bus carrying wounded service members of Ukrainian forces from the besieged Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol drives under escort of the pro-Russian military in Novoazovsk [2/30]Service members of pro-Russian troops stand guard before the expected departure of Ukrainian soldiers who surrendered at the besieged Azovstal steel mill [3/30]Service members of the Ukrainian armed forces who surrendered at the besieged Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol sit in a bus upon their arrival under escort of the pro-Russian military in the settlement of Olenivka in the Donetsk region [5/30]Service members of the Ukrainian armed forces [6/30]Service members of the Ukrainian armed forces sit in a bus upon their arrival in the settlement of Olenivka in the Donetsk region in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict in Mariupol [8/30]A view shows a bus carrying service members of the Ukrainian armed forces who surrendered at the besieged Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol and arrived under escort of the pro-Russian military in the settlement of Olenivka in the Donetsk region [9/30]Service members of Ukrainian forces who have surrendered after weeks holed up at Azovstal steel works are being searched by the pro-Russian military in Mariupol Russian Defence Ministry/via REUTERSMARIUPOL [10/30]Service members of Ukrainian forces who have surrendered after weeks holed up at Azovstal steel works leave the territory of the plant in Mariupol [11/30]A still image taken from a video released by Russian Defence Ministry shows what it claims is a service member of Ukrainian forces who left the besieged Azovstal steel plant being searched by the pro-Russian military in Mariupol Russian Defence Ministry/via REUTERSMARIUPOL [12/30]Service members of Ukrainian forces who have surrendered after weeks holed up at Azovstal steel works are seen inside a bus driving away under escort of the pro-Russian military in Mariupol [13/30]Drone footage shows people being carried on stretchers from the Azovstal steelworks plant in the city of Mariupol [14/30]A wounded service member of Ukrainian forces from the besieged Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol is transported on a stretcher out of a bus which arrived under escort of the pro-Russian military in Novoazovsk [15/30]Buses carrying service members of Ukrainian forces who have surrendered after weeks holed up at Azovstal steel works drive away under escort of the pro-Russian military in Mariupol [16/30]A service member of pro-Russian troops stands guard next to a combat vehicle with the symbol "Z" seen on its side before the expected evacuation of wounded Ukrainian soldiers from the besieged Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol [17/30]Service members of Ukrainian forces who have surrendered after weeks holed up at Azovstal steel works are seen inside a bus driving away under escort of the pro-Russian military in Mariupol [18/30]A still image taken from a video released by Russian Defence Ministry shows what it claims are service members of Ukrainian forces [20/30]Service members of the Ukrainian armed forces More in this CollectionSee all picturesItem 21 of 30 A still image taken from a video released by Russian Defence Ministry shows what it claims are service members of Ukrainian forces who left the besieged Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol Russian Defence Ministry/via REUTERS[21/30]A still image taken from a video released by Russian Defence Ministry shows what it claims are service members of Ukrainian forces Russian Defence Ministry/via REUTERSShare this gallery © 2025 Reuters. All rights reserved The full investigation can be downloaded here  A collection of intercepted phone conversations that were used as research materials in this investigation can be accessed here Our directory of archived videos of the Mariupol shelling and its aftermath can be accessed here Our map summarizing the estimated trajectories and potential firing sites near Mariupol can be accessed here including the names of the eleven identified individuals tied to the incident This artillery attack struck densely-populated segments in the northeastern section of Mariupol due to inaccurate use of multiple rocket launch rocket system (MLRS) fire Our investigation used materials submitted by Ukraine as part of an International Court of Justice (ICJ) case which were made available to a small group of investigators We verified and analyzed these ICJ materials by conducting in-depth open source research to identify the individuals and circumstances described in this evidence We are making available many of these materials which include drone videos of the aftermath soon after the shelling and a number of intercepted telephone conversations between those organizing and conducting the artillery attack we are still working on adding subtitles to intercepted telephone conversations and will continue to publish these over the coming days We encourage our readers to also analyze and verify these materials and share any new findings in the comments of this article or on social media A database of archived videos from the shelling and its aftermath was compiled and saved by Bellingcat. These materials served as the data for our analysis of the craters and potential firing sites east of Mariupol Archived videos from the shelling and its aftermath Bellingcat analyzed all available public videos and private drone footage to establish estimated artillery trajectories and potential firing sites, which we visualized on a map. Estimated artillery trajectories (red lines) and potential firing sites (red fire symbols) The average trajectory is marked by a thick yellow line pointing to a location 7-10 km northwest of Bezimenne (white arrow) Bellingcat has determined conclusively that the artillery attack in the Ukrainian town of Mariupol on 24 January 2015 two colonels and three lieutenant colonels Bellingcat has determined that two artillery batteries of Multiple Launch Rocket Systems were transported from Russia into Ukraine the day before the Mariupol operation In the course of analyzing the events in the eve of and on 24 January 2015 Bellingcat additionally identified two Russian generals involved with selection and assignment of Russian artillery specialists to commanding roles in Eastern Ukraine This investigation was made possible due to access to raw video and audio data made available by the Ukrainian government to a small group of international investigative media for the purposes of independent assessment and voice samples from public statements of certain of the identified persons including the OSCE SMM report from 24 January 2015 Bellingcat’s investigation is the first to identify the role of active Russian military units You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed Ukraine — Two columns of Russian tanks and military vehicles fired Grad missiles from Russia at a border post in southeastern Ukraine This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2025 audio and/or video material shall not be published rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use The AP will not be held liable for any delays errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing A mixture of soldiers, police and volunteers are fortifying a checkpoint designed to defend the city of nearly 500,000 from pro-Russian forces who took control of part of the town of Novoazovsk, and are gradually moving towards Mariupol. When civilian cars approach the exit of the city leading to Novoazovsk, pro-Ukrainian fighters warn them to go back for their own safety. Ukrainian fighters falling back from Novoazovsk say they have not totally given up the town but are outnumbered by their adversaries. "The right bank [of the river in Novoazovsk] is ours and the left one is not," Leonid Matiukhin, Ukraine's army spokesman, told the Guardian. "This is an open war of Russia against Ukraine," said a soldier from Dnipro 1 volunteer battalion. "Ask our generals why we still have neither artillery nor aviation support." The new clashes are significant because so far the six-month crisis has been concentrated on Crimea and two major cities in the east, Donetsk and Luhansk. Mariupol is Ukraine's 10th-largest city and located about 30 miles (48km) from the Russian border. Several people were killed in clashes in April, but since then the city has been calm and under government control. Now however, the Ukrainians claim that Russian hardware and soldiers have crossed the border to aid the attack on Novoazovsk. Russia has denied its troops and hardware are in eastern Ukraine. When Ukraine captured 10 paratroopers in the east earlier this month, Moscow said they had got lost and strayed deep into Ukrainian territory. "There is military equipment in Novoazovsk which came across the border two days ago from Russia," one pro-Ukrainian fighter told Reuters. "The equipment is carrying the flags of the DNR [Donetsk People's Republic] rebels but they are regular Russian forces." Another fighter who had fallen back on Mariupol told the Guardian that the Russian army had been shelling Ukrainian troops around Novoazovsk for weeks before storming across the border. He said the Russians had hastily painted the licence plates of their armoured vehicles with white paint and the letters DNR. "Their tanks are advancing and the howitzers are backing them – these are their tactics," said Aleksey, another Dnipro 1 fighter, whose face was covered by a balaclava. Several villages near the Russian border are totally controlled by Russians, he added. The mood in Mariupol, where the regional governor moved his office from rebel-controlled Donetsk, is tense but calm. The city authorities have been checking the availability of bomb shelters in basements and factories. The Guardian saw dozens of Ukrainian armoured vehicle carriers entering Mariupol. Many refugees who fled to the city from embattled Donetsk, Makiivka, Gorlovka and Illovaisk are rapidly fleeing Mariupol, with the number of cars shrinking on the city's roads. Fighters of Azov, another volunteer Ukrainian battalion, claim that while two months ago Russian nationals made up half of those captured in fighting, now 100% of captives have Russian passports. "There used to be the special Russian groups that were training the rebels, but now we have the regular Russian army forces," said Oleg Odnorozhenko, deputy head of Azov. The Azov fighters, mostly from Ukraine's Russian-speaking east, adhere to a far-right ideology. They claim they have some heavy weapons and anticipate receiving more from the Ukrainian government soon. But as supporters of the pro-European Maidan protests last winter, they feel betrayed by western allies, who they expected to supply Ukraine with weapons instead of using sanctions against the Kremlin. "The west is acting not rightly – to put it mildly – allowing Putin to increase the aggression," Odnorozhenko said. "No sanctions will force Putin to refrain from his new Soviet project." Tap to enable a layout that focuses on the article Print Russian armored vehicles thundered into southern Ukraine and unleashed an offensive against the strategic town of Novoazovsk as the 5-month-old separatist battle opened a new front Novoazovsk lies a few miles west of the border with Russia on a road that leads to Mariupol a vital Ukrainian shipping terminus on the Sea of Azov the road eventually connects with the Russian military installations on the Crimean peninsula which Russia invaded in February and annexed a month later The seaside corridor would also provide Russia and its eastern Ukrainian proxies control of the oil and gas fields that Russian energy giant Gazprom operates in the Sea of Azov as well as military hardware production in the Zaporizhia region and food grown and processed in Kherson the Ukrainian mainland’s gateway to Crimea “The city of Novoazovsk is under fire from both Russia and occupied spots on Ukrainian territory,” Col Andriy Lysenko of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council told journalists at his daily briefing in Kiev Ukrainian government forces control the roads leading from the separatist-occupied Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the east armored personnel carriers and rocket launchers spotted on the road into Novoazovsk entered Ukraine from Russia rather than separatist-held areas Russia maintains a major military installation at Taganrog just across the Ukrainian border on the eastern end of the inland sea Reports from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization also said Russia was infusing military hardware and fighters into the southern corridor would give Russia a land bridge from Taganrog to Crimea “Regular Russian units are operating in eastern Ukraine” as well as the local separatists Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told lawmakers in Warsaw attributing the information to Polish intelligence services and NATO The Obama administration also expressed concern about the intelligence and media reports of armor and fighters flooding into Ukraine from Russia “These incursions indicate a Russian-directed counteroffensive is likely underway,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters in Washington The reported artillery attacks on Novoazovsk followed a summit Tuesday in Minsk where Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko met for the first time since the Kiev leader’s June 7 inauguration Both said they saw “positive” results from the meeting with other regional leaders no breakthroughs were reported on the Ukraine conflict which has taken more than 2,000 lives since April Poroshenko told the summit attendees that Russia must respect Ukraine’s border and stop sending arms and mercenaries to prop up the separatists Putin told the forum that the war would drag on until Kiev realized it couldn’t achieve a military victory Putin declined to take part in peace talks over the Ukraine crisis repeating his claim that Russia wasn’t involved He said ending the bloodshed was “Ukraine’s business.” Lysenko said the government was still in control in Novoazovsk He also said that industry and transport were functioning normally in Mariupol a steel-making city and key outlet to the Black and Mediterranean seas for eastern Ukraine Fighting along the new Sea of Azov front line inflicted heavy casualties who said 225 enemy fighters had been killed in the previous 24 hours He also said three Russian military helicopters had violated Ukrainian airspace over the Kherson region Ukraine’s Defense Ministry reported fresh shelling and rocket fire on the Donetsk international airport which remains in government hands but has been closed since mid-May because of the intense fighting around the city which was home to 1 million residents before the conflict Ukraine’s Security Service said Tuesday that its forces had intercepted a convoy of tanks coming across the Russian border toward Novoazovsk a day earlier and captured 10 Russian paratroopers accompanying the column NATO has been reporting military equipment and troops moving into Ukraine from Russia for the last two weeks Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday said he had no information on the reported movements Follow @cjwilliamslat for the latest international news 24/7 Hollywood Inc. World & Nation World & Nation Subscribe for unlimited accessSite Map Ukraine | Two columns of tanks and military vehicles rolled into southeastern Ukraine from Russia on Thursday after Grad missiles were fired at a border post and Ukraine's overmatched border guards fled a senior NATO official said at least 1,000 Russian troops have poured into Ukraine with sophisticated equipment leaving no doubt that the Russian military had invaded southeastern Ukraine "The hand from behind is becoming more and more overt now," Brig Nico Tak said at NATO's military headquarters adding that Russia's ultimate aim was to stave off defeat for the separatists and turn eastern Ukraine into a "frozen conflict" that would destabilize the country indefinitely "An invasion is an invasion is an invasion," tweeted the Lithuanian ambassador to the U.N. Security Council will hold an emergency meeting on Thursday afternoon "Russian forces have entered Ukraine," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said canceling a foreign trip and calling an emergency meeting of the country's security council Poroshenko urged his citizens to resist giving into panic "Destabilization of the situation and panic this is as much of a weapon of the enemy as tanks," Poroshenko told the security council the strategic southeastern town of Novoazovsk appeared firmly under the control of separatists and their Russian backers third front in the war in eastern Ukraine between the separatists and Poroshenko's government in Kiev told the BBC that "NATO has never produced a single piece of evidence" of Russian troops operating in Ukraine He said the only Russian soldiers in Ukraine were the 10 captured this week who Moscow insists had mistakenly wandered across the border The Russian Defense Ministry didn't directly deny its troops were in Ukraine but said the list of Russian military units said to be operating in Ukraine had no relation to reality Lysenko said the missiles from Russia were fired at Ukrainian positions in the southeast about 11 a.m including tanks and other fighting vehicles They entered Ukraine from Veselo-Voznesenka and Maximovo in the Rostov region of Russia Russian stock markets dived as Switzerland joined the European Union in imposing restrictions on Russian state banks and fears grew that the U.S and EU could impose further sanctions on Russian businesses and individuals in response to the military escalation Russia's MICEX index dropped nearly 2 percent on Thursday and major Russian state banks VTB and Sberbank dropped more than 4 percent "Over the past two weeks we have noted a significant escalation in both the level and sophistication of Russia's military interference in Ukraine," Tak said in Casteau "Russia is reinforcing and resupplying separatist forces in a blatant attempt to change the momentum of the fighting which is currently favoring the Ukrainian military." He said the 1,000 Russian troops was a conservative estimate and said another 20,000 Russian troops were right over the border NATO also produced satellite images to provide what it called additional evidence that Russian combat soldiers equipped with sophisticated heavy weaponry are operating inside Ukraine's sovereign territory "This is highly sophisticated weaponry that requires well-trained crews and it is extremely unlikely that this sort of equipment is used by volunteers," Tak said Moscow has described the Russian citizens fighting with the separatists as volunteers Tak said the satellite images were only "the tip of the iceberg" in terms of the overall scope of Russian troop and weapons movements NATO also has detected large quantities of advanced weapons tanks and armored personnel carriers being transferred to separatist forces in eastern Ukraine," he said "The presence of these weapons along with substantial numbers of Russian combat troops inside Ukraine make the situation increasingly grave." said in an interview on Russian state television Thursday up to 4,000 Russians have fought on the separatist side since the armed conflict began in April government also has accused Russia of orchestrating the rebel campaign and sending in tanks "These incursions indicate a Russian-directed counteroffensive is likely underway in Donetsk and Luhansk," U.S State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said She voiced concern about overnight deliveries of materiel in southeast Ukraine near Novoazovsk and said Russia was being dishonest about its actions are being sent 30 miles (about 50 kilometers) inside Ukraine without them or their families knowing where they are going She cited reports of burials in Russia for those who have died in Ukraine and wounded Russian soldiers being treated in a St an Associated Press journalist saw rebel checkpoints on Novoazovsk's outskirts and was told he couldn't enter One of the rebels said there was no fighting in the town which lies along the road connecting Russia to the Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula This area had previously escaped the fighting that has engulfed areas to the north and the only way rebels could have reached the southeast was by coming through Russia The new southeastern front raised fears that the separatists are seeking to create a land link between Russia and Crimea it could give them or Russia control over the entire Sea of Azov and the gas and mineral riches that energy experts believe it contains Ukraine already lost roughly half its coastline several major ports and significant Black Sea mineral rights in March when Russia annexed Crimea a city of 450,000 about 30 kilometers (20 miles) to the west of Novoazovsk a brigade of Ukrainian forces arrived at the airport on Wednesday while deep trenches were dug a day earlier on the city's edge National Guard spokesman Ruslan Muzychuk told the AP in Mariupol that the government has evidence that large amounts of weapons have been brought into Novoazovsk from across the Russian border He added that National Guard reinforcements were taking up positions in Mariupol "The positions are being strengthened," the spokesman said "The road from Novoazovsk to Mariupol is under the control of Ukrainian troops." Associated Press journalists on the border have seen the rebels with a wide range of unmarked military equipment — including tanks Buk missile launchers and armored personnel carriers — and have encountered many Russians among the rebel fighters 11 people were killed by shelling overnight Kiev accused Russia yesterday of sending more tanks and troops into eastern Ukraine and said they were heading toward the rebel-held town of Novoazovsk on the southern coast expanding their presence on what it fears could be the next battlefront Russia did not respond to the accusation which would go further to kill off a European-brokered truce that was met by relentless rebel advances after it came into effect on Sunday Moscow always has denied accusations that its forces are fighting in Ukraine there were signs that the rebels might be prepared to halt their advance having achieved their main military objective this week by seizing the strategic town of Debaltseve in defiance of the cease-fire Kiev’s biggest worry is that rebels will continue their advance to threaten Mariupol a highly strategic port of 500,000 people that is the biggest city still under government control in the two rebellious eastern provinces lies 25 miles to the east along the coast near the Russian border military equipment and ammunition have been sighted crossing from Russia into Ukraine,” military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said 10 missile systems and busloads of troops had crossed the frontier which is considering tightening sanctions against Russia and arming Kiev also says it has sighted Russian reinforcements The State Department said Russian support for the rebels was undermining international diplomacy and would bring “costs” on Moscow Western nations have held out hope that they can revive a peace deal brokered by France and Germany in the Belarussian capital of Minsk on Feb even though the rebels ignored it to seize Debaltseve inflicting one of the worst defeats of the 10-month-old war on Kiev the military setbacks darkened the mood as crowds gathered for the first anniversary of an uprising that toppled Moscow-leaning President Viktor Yanukovich and culminated in war Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko accused a top aide to Russia’s Vladimir Putin of being behind the sniper killings of 100 Ukrainian protesters on the streets of Kiev during the uprising a year ago the head of state security told me that special-forces operatives gave evidence that the Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov led the organization of groups of foreign snipers on the Maidan,” Poroshenko told some of the relatives of those killed Russia’s Foreign Ministry called the accusation “madness.” is known locally as “the Maidan” and is where last year’s protests took place The TimesUkrainian forces have succeeded in blowing up a Russian tank more than 60 miles behind enemy lines had its turret sent flying tens of metres into the air after an explosion near the city of Novoazovsk The turret and the gun together weigh about 17 tonnes Defence experts believe that Ukrainian Special Forces could have adopted the sort of insurgency tactics used in Iraq and Afghanistan to carry out the attack sneaking deep behind enemy lines to lay improvised explosive devices (IEDs) or anti-tank mines on the roadside although a drone strike is also a possibility The part of the Donbas where the attack took place has been under Russian control since Ukraine has confirmed that hundreds of its fighters trapped for more than two months in Mariupol’s Azovstal steelworks have been evacuated said 53 badly wounded soldiers were taken to the town of Novoazovsk She said another 211 were evacuated using a humanitarian corridor to Olenivka – also a rebel-held town Russia earlier said a deal had been reached to evacuate the injured troops About a dozen buses carrying Ukrainian fighters who were holed up beneath the besieged plant were seen leaving the huge industrial site in the southern port city on Monday evening Russian state-run media outlets also posted footage of what they said were injured Ukrainian soldiers being evacuated from Azovstal Ms Maliar said the troops would be exchanged for captured Russian soldiers In his video address after midnight local time on Tuesday as well as the Red Cross and the United Nations (UN) were involved in the evacuation operation “Ukraine needs its heroes alive,” he said he cautioned that the Ukrainian troops may not be freed immediately and warned that negotiations over their release would require “delicacy and time” told the BBC it was essential that the deal struck with Russia “the fate of these very brave men will be absolutely unknown and will be in Russian hands which is far from an ideal situation” said Ukrainian soldiers evacuated from the steel plant would be treated “in line with the relevant international laws” Hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers – Marines the National Guard – including the Azov regiment – border guards police and territorial defence units – as well as a number of civilians with young children have been holed up at the site since advancing Russian troops encircled the southern city in early March The sprawling four-square mile complex was a maze of tunnels designed to survive a nuclear war Last month, Mr Putin called off a planned assault on the site, citing fears of high Russian casualties. But heavy bombardment continued virtually non-stop, Ukrainian commanders have said Last satellite data indicate that the Russian Federation keeps expanding railway network on temporary occupied territories of Ukraine in order to improve its military logistics Last month these works accelerated 40 kilometers to the south of Donetsk Construction of railway line between Mariupol and Berdyansk has also advanced The Center of Journalist Investigations assumed at the end of October 2023 that Russia would construct new railway lines in the “square” near Donetsk – between Olenivka Possible scheme of Russian railway lines on temporary occupied territory of Donetsk oblast Green color marks already constructed lines; red color marks lines being constructed right now These lines will be built into existing railways through Mospyne and finally lead to the important railway hub in Ilovaisk satellite pictures of this area have indicated that respective construction works have been under progress 2024 showed signs that Russians laid “the bed” for future railway line from East to West The largest part of this line seems to be the old railway line which Russians plan to renovate Comparison of satellite pictures of the line Dokuchaevsk-Styla-Starobeshevo from 11.11.2023 and 02.05.2024 It seems that Russian occupants are going to construct new 50 km long railway from Donetsk to the south, through villages of Andriivka and Novobeshevo to Novozarjivka. Newly constructed railway line Novoselivka-Granitne-Burne passes near the village of Novozarjivka. This line has been constructed at the very start of Russian efforts to expand railway network in occupied Donbas. As the Center reported last week it is very likely that this line will work by the beginning of summer 2024 Satellite pictures of areas near villages of Novoselivka and Novozarjivka (half a year difference) direct railway communication will link Granitne It should be mentioned that today Olenivka is railway hub within existing railway line Donetsk-Volnovakha-Mariupol In accordance with rough estimates, new railway lines will be from 100 to 150 kilometers long. New railway lines will reduce by two times the distance for the delivery of Russian military supplies to the front line It will increase the number of Russian military railway trains and speed up rotation of Russian soldiers and equipment on Eastern and Southern fronts Russian spent nine months for the construction of first 60 kilometers and railway bridge over Kalmius river The first Russian train departed from Mariupol port only in May The first Russian train departs from Mariupol port to Volnovakha in Donetsk oblast Source of photo: https://t.me/andriyshTime Russian occupants are able to accelerate implementation of their projects due to almost endless human and material resources “The first train from Mariupol port to Volnovakha station departed today. The front platform has been launched before the locomotive for mine security as Russians were afraid that locomotive would be exploded by mines. As Russian construction of railway near Granitne moves quickly, this is bad news”, as reported telegram channel АндрющенкоTIME on May 2 Russian land works covered 16 kilometers within one week Satellite Sentinel-2 identified them between Mariupol and Berdyansk from Komyshuvate village in Donetsk oblast to the village of Chervone Pole in Zaporizhzhia oblast Pictures of satellite Sentinel-2 of the area on administrative border between Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk oblast dated 02.05.2024 and near the village of Chervone Pole in comparison with pictures dated 22.04.2024 apps.sentinel-hub.com/eo-browser Land works on this line, apart from highway M14, indirectly confirm joint hypothesis of our Center and Petro Andruschenko, an advisor of the Mayor of Mariupol, that Russian occupants simultaneously construct new railway line and bypass highway near Mariupol. Our material about 70 km long land corridor from Russia read here Scheme of new railway line from Mariupol to Berdyansk Red color marks new railway line under construction green color marks existing railway line and grey indicates highway M14  Russians have launched some works on car bridge over Berda river near Osypenko village since the beginning of 2024 Bridge over Berda river on highway M14 in the northern part of Osypenko There were no Russian or Ukrainian reports about damaging this bridge It is located directly on land corridor M14 just 1 500 meters away from the dam of Berdyansk water reservoir Source of photo: apps.sentinel-hub.com/eo-browser In February 2024, our Center reported that Russia launched the construction of new railway line from Mariupol to Crimea Now Russians construct simultaneously railway line and expand existing highway near Novoazovsk towards Mariupol “Novoazovsk-Mariupol. Highway has been expanded and new railway line has been prepared. It is an area near Novoazovsk (50 kilometers from Mariupol). You see the scope of works. Regular traffic jams for Russian military columns”, as reported Андрющенко TIME on May 6 New roads of the Russian war on temporary occupied territories of Southern Ukraine