@clement_molin
In recent weeks, Russian 🇷🇺 forces intensified offensive actions around Dobropilla

Russian infiltrators have been sighted in multiple small towns south of Dobropilla, while urban fightings are ongoing in Bilytske and Shevchenko.

At the same time, the first attempts to infiltrate Dobropilla are taking place from the east, while the main offensive actions are happening further south, out of Pokrovsk.

Finally, after 8 months of battle, Russian army managed to completly clear Pokrovsk north and western suburbs (Rodynske and Hryshyne), which is allowing the city to be used as a logistic HUB for the first time (which means soldiers can +/- freely walk in the city, logistic can set bases and the threat from constant FPV strikes is disapearing from the southern part of the city (which does not mean strikes do not continue, as well as artillery shelling).
https://twitter.com/pic/media%2FHQCO68hWsAAfJ3s.jpg
tweet

Addendum.

Updated Russian infiltration routes according to information from https://x.com/RALee85/status/2090521203651809349 and information about known Russian infiltration events in the city.
- The main responsible Russian units in this sector are their 6th and 7th Motorized Rifle Brigades.
- The Russians are establishing positions in Dovhiy Forest.
- They use teams to repeat the signal of their radios (TYT and Lira radio systems) for infiltrators moving further west.
- Russian forces in this direction continue to aggressively employ waiting FPV drones, including changing their positions daily to make it more difficult to locate them. FPVs are also used to patrol logistics routes, escort infiltration teams, and strike identified targets.

Furthermore, from channel t.me/nikolaevka_online regarding Russian infiltration methods: "They infiltrate one or two at a time through areas with cover, gather together, and then attack the city. So, they might lose 500 people for 10-15 to reach the desired location and capture a few positions."

As already mentioned, very small groups of Russian infiltrators are spotted regularly in the city by now.

Russia's🇷🇺 summer offensive in the Donbas continues on 3 axes, Sloviansk, Kostiantynivka and Dobropilla

I updated my maps according to my interpretation of the situation on these 3 axes, with a focus on each of them. In short, it's tensed for Ukraine 🇺🇦.

🧵THREAD🧵1/12 ⬇️

Here is my map without any layer or city name in order to correctly see the situation.

What Russia took in 2026 is in orange. There is an online battle for numbers and control map so here is my interpretation :

🔹A single video (most often flag video) is not enough of a proof to show something, I'm using 3 kinds of sources, as usual (I'm one of the only mapper to explain what my sources are) :
1- Geolocated footage
2- Satellite images
3- Ground sources, both direct and through other trusted accounts
🔹Control (blue or orange) is added only when one side control the area OR has a very high number of positions in the area, which makes other side presence insignificant, often despite heavy communication.
🔹Grey zone shows contested, infiltrated and unknown areas. In some grey zone areas, you will find many videos of one side, which does not mean the other one has no soldiers there.

-> There are Ukrainian soldiers in orange zone and Russian soldiers in blue zone.

AIRSTRIKE MAP :

As usual, I continue to map Russian airstrike campaign. In August, hundreds of new strikes targeted Donbas, with the first massive strikes into the central cities.

High concentration near Dobropilla, in Drujkivka, as well as between both cities. Some strikes behind Kramatorsk and Sloviansk and some usual strikes east of Sloviansk. With around 1 650 airstrikes in 20 days, we have approximately 35 daily airstrike on this single frontline area (and I didn't check inside Kramatorsk and Sloviansk).

CIVILIAN POPULATION :

Based on my information, there are still 60 000 civilians living in Kramatorsk, with ~150 000 in total in the remaining part of Donbas.

This is significant, since evacutations, logistics and medical assistance need to be provided to those who stayed.

FORTIFICATIONS :

If fortifications significantly slow down and help eliminate Russian soldiers on a daily basis, they are also a challenge, especially around the so called "doors".

White dots on this map are the "doors" (roads) Ukraine let into its main defensive line for its own logistics. Those are heavily targeted by Russia, but also the place where they try to infiltrate.

SITUATION IN DOBROPILLA :

In the Dobropilla direction, Russia finally consolidated the destroyed town of Rodysnke, while heavy fightings are still happening in Bilytske.

To supply Dobropilla, Ukraine is using 5 roads (so 5 different doors). Russian army continues to send infiltrators deep behind the lines, with some of them reaching Dobropilla or Vodyanske. Most of the time, their value is very small, but sometimes, some special forces are doing these infiltrations to set ambushes and occupy key positions/target drone teams, which is very problematic.

Closer to Pokrovsk, infiltrations and fighting continue around Shevchenko.

In the Drujkivka, direction, the situation is similar to what I wrote a week ago.

SITUATION IN KOSTIANTYNIVKA : The battle for Kostiantynivka is still ongoing, despite many claims. I believe Russia control around 50% of the city (mainly southern part), which means they have more soldiers than Ukraine, they can enter the city and accumulate. Most of this "50% under Russian control" has not been cleared, there are still Ukrainian positions in the south, which continue sporadic fighting. It's worth noting there are not too much firefights, mainly air and drone strikes, soldiers remain in shelter and rarely go out. Another 10 to 15% of the city is still under Ukrainian control (north-eastern part of the city), where we can find some Russian infiltrators. On the other side of the river, many Ukrainian soldiers are still present according to recent videos, but this is a grey zone. This video from recent days shows Russian artillery shelling in the center of the city : x.com/moklasen/statu and this is not an isolated event (x.com/AudaxonX/statu / x.com/Mocca2X/status / x.com/giK1893/status)

Infiltrations continue to reach Oleksievo-Drujkivka and the first flags have been sighted in Mykolaipillia west of Kostiantynivka.

I have no clear information regarding Chasiv Yar, except the area is still a big grey zone, with Ukrainian soldiers still present close to the city. Kostinaytnivka is expected to be definitively abandonned in autumn, a year after the battle for the city started. Ukraine will need to heavily resist in Oleksievo-Drujkivka and Raiske to delay the battle for Drujkivka.

SITUATION IN SLOVIANSK : This area has been the most successful for Russia in 2026. The battle for Mykolaivka will probably soon start, since the first infiltrations have been sighted near the city. At the same time, cross canal infiltrations are getting closer to Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, Russia will sooner or later control the high ground above both cities. Kramatorsk is mainly on the eastern side of a river, it is more vulnerable to infiltrations, while Sloviansk is on the western side, with much more natural defenses against those infiltrations. Yesterday, two good informations came about Russian infiltrations into Mykolaivka (x.com/Playfra0/statu / x.com/RALee85/status), both of which showing the "Dovhyi forest" used for infiltration. A month ago already, I reported on my map update the use of this forest for accumulation and infiltration (x.com/clement_molin/), months before, heavy airstrikes happened in this exact forest.

About supply roads, my previous assessment from 2 weeks ago is still working to understand how things work.

Regarding the north flank, situation is significantly improving, details will follow hopefully sooner or later.
https://x.com/clement_molin/status/2086841056365085129?s=20

As it was the case in 2024 and 2025, August is going to be one of the best month for Russian forces this month, with a faster progression in the Donbas.

In fact, as usual, Russia absolutely needs too reach urban areas before winter in order to fight for those during winter, since it is very deadly to move in open terrain during this season.

For all these offensive operations, Russian losses remain very high and the progress is costly.

Thank you for following this latest update regarding the Donbas battle.

I will continue to update you on what is happening with regular and sourced analysis and will continue to talk about everything, including mid/long range strikes. And thank you for following me here, on Telegram !

Both Ukraine 🇺🇦 and Russia 🇷🇺 continue to expand their strike campaign against railway infrastructure

In August alone, Russia already launched 36 strikes on different trains, including multiple strikes with Geran-4 jet drones against civilian trains. Russia is particularly targeting Ukrainian locomotives, they hit a lot of civilian locomotives in July on the Dnipro-Zaporizhzhia line, which forced Ukraine to stop the transit of civilian trains on this direction.

Right now, Russia is trying to disrupt trains in Odesa, with 6 strikes this month on civilian trains and a few more on railway infrastructure in the region. Other civilian trains have been hit elsewhere, with strikes also targeting military trains in Dnipro and Kharkiv region. One of the recent strikes on Kyiv targeted a locomotive depot in the eastern part of the city.

Ukraine, on the other hand is concentrating its strikes against military trains (there are no civilian trains in the occupied territories right now)