The Russian military has targeted a field camp of the Ukrainian 72nd Separate Mechanized Brigade in the city of Pavlograd with an Iskander ballistic missile, the Defense Ministry in Moscow announced on Monday.
The 72nd was decimated in the battle for Ugledar, giving up the fortified Donbass town last week in a retreat the media in Kiev have described as chaotic, costly, and long-overdue. There was speculation that the brigade had orders to hold until Vladimir Zelensky finished his visit to the US, so as to avoid disrupting his “victory plan” narrative.
The mauled brigade was apparently withdrawn to an industrial area in Pavlograd, about 100km west of Pokrovsk, another frontline flashpoint. The 20-second video released by the Russian Defense Ministry appears to have been taken by a reconnaissance drone using night vision, and shows a large factory building going up in smoke.
The Iskander-M is a tactical ballistic missile with a confirmed range of 400km. It was unclear when exactly the video was taken.
Ukrainian media announced on Monday that the 72nd, also known as the ‘Black Zaporozhians,’ had received a new commanding officer, Colonel Alexander Okhrimenko. The new leader previously commanded the 14th Mechanized Brigade, but was reassigned to head the Odessa regional recruitment office in July 2023, after revelations of widespread corruption in the Black Sea port.
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