‘The city is being destroyed’ Photos from Ukraine’s Kostiantynivka, the likely next target of Russia’s offensive
Russian forces are close to fully capturing Toretsk and Chasiv Yar. Securing these two Ukrainian strongholds in Donbas, which have been the sites of months-long fighting, would pave the way for Russia’s advance on Kostiantynivka. “Once the Russians take these two cities, Kostiantynivka will be next. It serves as the nearest rear base for the grouping fighting for Toretsk, Kurdyumivka, and Chasiv Yar,” Andriy Kramchenkov, head of the Ukrainian news outlet Suspilne Donbas, said on February 4. Meduza gave the same assessment in its latest battlefield update.
On January 31, the head of the Kostiantynivka City Military Administration, Serhiy Horbunov, stated that the front line was 10 kilometers (six miles) from the city, where around 17,000 residents remain. Official figures indicate that no children are left in Kostiantynivka — the last four were evacuated at the end of January, according to Donetsk Governor Vadym Filashkin. “The enemy bombards the city daily with guided bombs, ballistic missiles, and FPV drones. The city is being destroyed in its entirety,” he said. Meduza shares photos from Kostiantynivka, which appears increasingly likely to be the next target of Russia’s offensive.