Battlefield commander becomes target of attack by Russia and Ukraine
Both Ukraine and Russia have launched new tactics to contain each other's advances, some of which include killing military commanders on the front lines.
Báo Khoa học và Đời sống•07/07/2025
On July 5, the Russia-Ukraine battlefield was filled with smoke and fire, the situation was still tense and deadlocked. Many new developments appeared on the fronts, the actions of all sides attracted the attention of the world . Russia's Rybar channel reported that the 2nd Assault Company, belonging to the 425th Independent Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Army (AFU), was almost "completely missing" on the Sumy front, which was surprising. The situation on the Sumy Front was already complicated, and the “mysterious disappearance” of the 2nd Assault Company could indicate that there were many unforeseen dangerous factors on the battlefield. It is possible that they encountered a heavy fire attack from the Russian Armed Forces (RFAF), or they could have been caught in a dilemma, in a difficult area of the front.
As for casualties, Colonel Zakharevich, commander of the 110th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade, was killed in a Russian Iskander-M missile strike on the brigade's base in Gulyaipole, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, on July 2. On July 3, the body of Lieutenant Colonel Dmytro Romanyuk, deputy commander of the brigade, was recovered from the rubble. The brigade commander and his deputy brigade commander were killed together, and it is likely that the entire brigade command was “taken out” in a surprise attack from the Russian side, resulting in the deaths and injuries of many officers. President Zelensky also confirmed that the Russian attack caused more than 30 casualties in the 110th AFU Brigade; but Russian sources said there were 70 casualties. According to some Ukrainian sources, the missile attack on the headquarters of the 110th Motorized Infantry Brigade of the AFU, may have been carried out based on information "leaked" from within the unit, from pagers or chat groups. It is believed that the details of the event, which ended with a Russian missile strike, were discussed in advance in a group of hundreds of people. At the same time, it is believed that the information leak could have occurred due to a hack or loss of the phone of one of the group members.
Although after this incident the AFU command began to issue orders prohibiting communication by emergency pagers, experts believe that such restrictions are ineffective, since in fact there is no order that can cancel the so-called "horizontal communication", which is extremely susceptible to "leakage" in various forms. The loss of such senior officers by the AFU is undoubtedly a heavy blow to the morale and combat effectiveness of the AFU. This also reflects the precision and decisiveness of the RFAF in attacking important AFU targets in a “surgical” manner with real-time precision-guided weapons. In the direction of the city of Pokrovsk, the RFAF Army Group Center made significant progress on 3 July, when it advanced 9 km east of Pokrovsk, capturing the villages of Koptjeve, Mirne and Novokonomichne, as well as an 8 square kilometer area near Udachny west of Pokrovsk; it consolidated west of Novomykolaivka, and the attackers advanced north of the settlement. This RFAF achievement, pushed the AFU closer to a series of forest belts leading to the railway line west of Udachny and east of Molodetsk, both of which were the original objectives of the Russian army, in expanding the flanking advance. On the right flank of the Pokrovsk axis, the RFAF Army Group Center has formed a broad front. Ukrainian military analysis channel DeepState believes that the RFAF will increase pressure on the Udachny area and the Molodetsk area in an attempt to attack Ukraine's logistical lines to Pokrovsk and Mirnograd.
Currently, the Russians are less than 8 km from Pokrovsk’s main supply route and can use FPV UAVs to disrupt Ukrainian logistical support. In addition, a large number of fortifications south of the city have been destroyed. In the coming days, the Russians are likely to break through the city from the south. However, the Russian military also suffered great losses, when Deputy Commander of the Russian Navy, Major General Mikhail Gudkov, died in the Kursk region. This was announced by the Governor of the Kursk region, Primorye Oleg Kozhemyako. According to him, General Gudkov died in battle, due to a missile attack by the AFU. Major General Mikhail Gudkov, who was assigned to command the 155th Suvorov Marine Brigade, part of the Pacific Fleet, fought on the Kursk front when the AFU launched an offensive across the Russian border last August. According to a source, several missiles were fired at the 155th Brigade's field headquarters on the evening of July 5. It is possible that the brigade's command post had its radio communications compromised.
The deaths of senior commanders from both the Russian and Ukrainian armies show that information security in combat is vital. It also shows the severity of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. (photo source Military Review, Ukrinform, Kyiv Post, TASS).
It is believed that the details of the event, which ended with a Russian missile strike, were discussed in advance in a group of hundreds of people. At the same time, it is believed that the information leak could have occurred due to a hack or loss of the phone of one of the group members. 
Although after this incident the AFU command began to issue orders prohibiting communication by emergency pagers, experts believe that such restrictions are ineffective, since in fact there is no order that can cancel the so-called "horizontal communication", which is extremely susceptible to "leakage" in various forms. 
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