On 24 February 2022, the first day of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, a military engagement began in and around Okhtyrka, a city in the Sumy Oblast of Ukraine. Fighting took place in the outskirts of the city as Russian forces attempted to occupy the city. The initial advance was repelled, and the city was attacked by artillery fire. On March 26, 2022, it was reported that the strategic stronghold of Trostianets was taken back by Ukrainian forces. This disrupted Russian communications and supply routes, threatening the Russian front.

The Russian offensive has been criticized for civilian casualties and the use of cluster bombs, which may constitute war crimes.

Battle[edit]

Russian forces entered Sumy Oblast from Russia on the morning of 24 February. Clashes broke out in Okhtyrka between 12:00-14:00 as a Russian column attempted to pass through the city.^[4] On 25 February, battles began in the outskirts of Okhtyrka around 7:30 from the direction of the village of Velyka Pysarivka.^[5] Russian forces were unable to occupy Okhtyrka, and retreated the following day, leaving behind tanks and equipment.^[6]

On 25 February, BM-27 Uragan missiles hit a pre-school in Okhtyrka.^[7] The missiles killed a child and two adults. The missiles were allegedly cluster bombs, whose use may constitute a war crime, according to Amnesty International.^[8] Ukrainian officials also claim that Russian forces shot at a civilian bus near Okhtyrka.^[9]^[10]^[11] Dmytro Zhyvytskyi, the governor of Sumy Oblast, stated that three other civilians had been killed in the city.^[12]

On 26 February, two Danish journalists were wounded when their car was shot at by unknown forces.^[13]^[14] The city's mayor, Pavlo Kuzmenko, said in an interview after the battle that Russian soldiers "began to fear" Okhtyrka after having failed to capture it within three days.^[4]

According to Zhyvytskyi, during fighting on 27 February, Russian soldiers and civilians were killed.^[1]

Bombardment[edit]

On 28 February, Russian forces bombed and destroyed an oil depot in Okhtyrka.^[15]

On the same day, more than 70 Ukrainian soldiers were killed when a military base in Okhtyrka was hit by a Russian thermobaric bomb, local officials said.^[1]^[16]^[17]^[18]^[19]^[20] International law does not prohibit the use of thermobaric munitions, fuel-air explosive devices, or vacuum bombs against military targets.^[21]^[22] Their use against civilian populations may be banned by the United Nations (UN) Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW).^[23]

Oksana Markarova, the Ukrainian ambassador to the United States, claimed that the use of thermobaric weapons is in violation of the Geneva Conventions.^[24]^[25]^[26]

On 3 March, Zhyvytskyi claimed that a Russian airstrike on the local combined heat and power station had cut off the city's electricity and heating supply.^[27]^[28]

In the night of 7/8 March, Russian bomb destroyed an administrative building and heavily damaged neighboring museum of local history.^[29]

In the early morning of 10 March, Zhyvytskyi stated that Okhtyrka was being constantly bombed, destroying the city's infrastructure including the sewage system and water supply network.^[28]

On 14 March, Kuzmenko, the mayor of Okhtyrka, stated that at least three civilians had been killed in a Russian airstrike that struck a residential area.^[30]

By 26 March, Russian forces withdrew from Okhtyrka.^[4]^{[failed verification]}

Photos and a video
Okhtyrka after Russian shelling, 2 March 2022
The Russian shelling of a kindergarten resulted in 8 deaths
The Okhtyrka Heat and Power Plant after Russian shelling

Aftermath[edit]

In July, Okhtyrka suffered severe power issues due to damage on the plant from a March air raid.^[31] Kuzmenko credited the Ukrainian resistance in Okhtyrka with keeping Russian forces away from the major cities of Poltava and Dnipro.^[4]