Olusegun Ariyo
Russian special forces crept miles through a major gas pipeline near the town of Sudzha in an attempt to surprise Ukrainian forces as part of a major offensive to eject Ukrainian soldiers from the western Russian region of Kursk
Scores of Ukrainian soldiers reportedly seized about 1,300 square km of Russia’s Kursk region in August last year in what Kyiv said was an attempt to gain a bargaining chip in future negotiations and to force Russia to shift military forces from eastern Ukraine.
Russia’s Defence Ministry, in its daily update on the situation in Kursk, said its forces had retaken the village of Lebedevka, as well as seizing Novenke, a hamlet across the border in Ukraine’s neighbouring Sumy region.
According to a Ukrainian-born, pro-Russian military blogger, Yuri Podolyaka, Russian special forces had walked miles along the inside of the major gas pipeline and some had spent several days in the pipe before surprising Ukrainian forces from the rear near Sudzha.
DAILY POST reports that Sudzha is the home of major gas transfer and measuring stations on a pipeline that used to carry Russian natural gas into the Ukrainian gas transmission system for onward transportation to Europe.
The pro-Russian war blogger said a major battle was under way for Sudzha, stating that Russian forces had surprised Ukrainian soldiers by entering the area via a major gas pipeline.
Russian Telegram channels showed pictures of special forces in gas masks and lights, some using colourful Russian curses, along the inside of what looked like a large pipe.
In a statement from Ukraine’s general staff, Russian soldiers had used the gas pipeline in an attempt to gain a foothold, but airborne assault forces promptly detected them and responded with rocket, artillery and drone attacks that were destroying the Russian units.
