A Ukrainian soldier on the frontline near Avdiivka in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine (Oleg Palchyk)

Sunday’s Coverage: Kyiv’s Pilots Begin Training on F-16 Fighter Jets in US This Week

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1239 GMT:

The Ukraine General Staff says the Russian assault on Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine is weakening.

The military command said it repelled 15 Russian attacks from four directions on Avdiivka in the past 24 hours.

That compares with up to 60 attacks per day in the middle of last week.

Vitaliy Barabash, the head of the Avdiivka military administration, said the Russian offensive has “deflated”.

UPDATE 0610 GMT:

Russia will free four deported Ukrainian children after Qatari mediation, according to an official briefed on the situation.

The children, aged between 2 and 17, were handed over to Qatar’s Embassy in Moscow and are returning to their families via routes through Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Belarus. They are travelling by diplomatic convoy, train, and a privately chartered plane.

“We welcome today’s positive news, about the reunification of children with their families in the Ukraine through Qatari mediation efforts,” said Lolwah al-Khater, Qatar’s Minister of State for International Cooperation.

Ukrainian officials have confirmed the deportation of almost 20,000 children to Russia or Russian-occupied territories. They say the actual total is likely to be far higher, given the inability to verify the situation in areas still held by the Russians.

In March, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Russian “Children’s Rights” Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova over the forced transfers.

UPDATE 0534 GMT:

The Ukraine Air Force says it downed 11 of 12 Iran-made attack drones and two of six missiles fired by Russia overnight.

Debris injured three people, including a 10-year-old child, and damaged several private houses in the Poltava region in central Ukraine.

Power grids in the Nikopol district in the Dnipropetrovsk region were hit, leaving 1,500 families without electricity.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: A Ukrainian commander has said there is “zero chance” of Russia’s breakthrough in its intense assault on the town of Avdiivka in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

Col. Dmytro Lysyuk, the commander of Ukraine’s 128th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade, cited the heavy losses suffered by the Russians as they attacked with three battalions supported by tanks, artillery, and warplanes.

Avdiivka is about 20 km (12.5 miles) north of Donetsk city, the center of Russia’s position in the region.

Map: Institute for the Study of War

Lysyuk noted that the Russian tactic of sending a lengthy military column into battle also failed in spring 2022 near Kyiv, and near Vuhledar in eastern Ukraine in February.

The Ukrainian military says at least 36 Russian tanks and armored vehicles were destroyed in the first 24 hours, and 102 tanks and 183 armored vehicles — with 2,840 troops killed — from Tuesday to Sunday.

“The Russians should have realized this a long time ago,” said Lysyuk. “They have not managed to achieve even tactical success.

He explained that Russia’s commander of the Ukraine invasion, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, had underestimated the strength of Ukrainian defenses: “It was an intelligence failure.”

See also Ukraine War, Day 598: Russia “Facing Setbacks” in Attacks on Avdiivka in East

Avdiivka had a pre-invasion population of 31,000 residents. About 1,600 remain.