This day brought Ukraine both long-awaited deeply emotional victories on the diplomatic front, and new security challenges in the rear and on the contact line. The most important event of the day was the return of 160 Ukrainian servicemen from Russian captivity. At the same time, the situation in the regions remains tense: the enemy struck residential areas of Zaporizhia and Sumy. In response, the Defense Forces conducted large-scale operations involving long-range UAVs, which hit military facilities in the temporarily occupied Crimea and directly in Moscow. As a correspondent for the information portal 34.ua reports , the June battles and diplomatic rounds demonstrate the maximum increase in stakes on both sides.
Great return: 160 defenders of Ukraine released from captivity
Today, the 76th official prisoner exchange took place, one of the most successful in recent months. 160 Ukrainian soldiers who had been in isolation since 2022 were returned home. According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 115 heroic defenders of Mariupol were among the released.
In addition to the privates and sergeants, Ukraine has released 58 officers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service, and the State Special Transport Service. It is known that the youngest returned defender is 26 years old, and the oldest is 66. All fighters have been sent for an initial medical examination and long-term psychological rehabilitation. The United States of America and the United Arab Emirates acted as mediators in this complex negotiation procedure.
Operational situation: shelling of cities and mirror responses
Despite the joy of the exchange, frontline and rear cities suffered brutal blows from the Russian army:
Zaporizhzhia: On the evening of June 26, the enemy attacked the regional center with rockets and aerial bombs. Damage to residential buildings and outbreaks of fires were recorded. 12 civilians were injured , including three children .
Sumy: A Russian strike drone hit the roof of a nine-story residential building in one of the residential areas. A large-scale fire broke out at the scene of the impact, and rescuers quickly evacuated residents. In total, more than 14 injured and one dead were recorded in the Sumy region over the past 24 hours.
Nikopol region: became the object of a dense artillery attack, two people were killed, more than 10 were injured.
In parallel, the night of June 26 turned out to be a hot one for the aggressor himself. Russian monitoring channels recorded a massive raid by Ukrainian drones on Moscow and the Moscow region, where air defense systems were operating, as well as a series of powerful explosions in various areas of the occupied Crimean peninsula. On the front line, the General Staff recorded a record 257 combat clashes per day, and the occupiers’ losses in manpower amounted to over 1,310 people.
Expert opinions
Ihor Melnyk, infrastructure and urban defense analyst: “The strikes on residential buildings in Sumy and Zaporizhia, which we saw on June 26, are part of the usual tactics of terrorizing the civilian population when the enemy does not have significant successes on the front line. The hit on a nine-story building in Sumy once again raises the question of the need to strengthen mobile air defense fire groups around the northern regional centers. As for fuel and logistics infrastructure, despite the enemy’s systematic attempts to attack fuel storage facilities, the Ukrainian market demonstrates amazing flexibility thanks to the diversification of supplies from Europe.”
Olena Borsuk, lawyer, expert in international humanitarian law: “The return of 160 people is a colossal success of our diplomacy. Legally, each such exchange is a delicate task, since Russia constantly ignores the Geneva Conventions. The fact that 58 officers and over a hundred defenders of Mariupol are on the list indicates a strong lever of pressure from our partners – the USA and the UAE. Each released soldier is simultaneously a witness in future international tribunals regarding the conditions of detention and torture in Russian captivity. This track should continue in parallel with the documentation of new strikes on civilian objects in Zaporizhia.”
Mykhailo Zhyrokhov, military expert: “257 combat clashes in one day is an incredible intensity of fighting that exhausts both sides. The enemy is pressing on the Pokrovsky and Kupyansky directions, trying to use the summer period of dry weather. In this context, UAV strikes on Moscow and Crimea are critically important. They not only have a psychological effect, they disorganize the logistics of the enemy’s rear and force the enemy to pull scarce air defense systems from the front to protect its own capital. The dynamics of enemy losses of over 1,300 people per day indicates that the defensive operation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine remains highly effective.”
Recommendations for residents of frontline and rear regions
Given the increasing intensity of combined air attacks, the Civil Protection Service emphasizes the implementation of the following steps:
Responding to the threat of “Shaheeds” and KABs: residents of Sumy, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhia regions should take shelter at the first signs of alarm. A hit on the roof of a building in Sumy showed that the upper floors are the most vulnerable to UAV strikes.
Maintaining information hygiene: during mirror attacks on facilities in the Russian Federation or Crimea, it is strictly forbidden to disseminate unofficial data about types of Ukrainian weapons or flight trajectories prior to statements by official agencies.
Facilitating the rehabilitation of military personnel: Communities that host released defenders are encouraged to ensure maximum privacy for fighters and their families during the first stage of reintegration.