On November 28, 2025, the relentless war in Ukraine marked its 1,374th day, but the scale and intensity of conflict showed no signs of abating. In a dramatic escalation over just three days, Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces claimed to have destroyed $60 million worth of Russian air defense systems, including the Buk-M1, Buk-M2, and Tor-M2 platforms. According to a statement cited by The Kyiv Independent, these systems are “key elements of the enemy’s air defense system at the operational-tactical and operational depth. Their destruction significantly weakens the cover of important areas and strategic objects.” The blow comes as Ukraine continues to leverage advanced unmanned technology to offset Russia’s numerical superiority in equipment and manpower.
But the battlefield is not confined to high-tech drone strikes. On the southern front, Ukrainian forces, including the 33rd Separate Assault Regiment, repelled a Russian offensive near Huliaipole in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, regaining control of the area. The Southern Defense Forces told Hromadske that Russian troops had even reached the outskirts of Huliaipole, with the 102nd Territorial Defense Brigade engaging them in direct combat within the town. Ukrainian defenders reportedly repelled 20 Russian assaults in a single day across settlements such as Zatyshshia, Solodke, Chervone, Dobropillia, Priluky, Varvarivka, and Huliaipole. Yet, as of November 26, the situation remained tense, with Ukrainian troops holding their ground but not surrounded.
The human toll of these clashes continues to mount. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced on November 28 that it had charged four Russian soldiers in absentia for their roles in a June 3, 2025, rocket attack on the city center of Sumy. The BM-21 Grad multiple launch rocket system assault killed six people and injured more than 30, including three children. The SBU identified Vladimir Shchipitsyn, commander of the 30th Motorized Rifle Regiment, as the planner, with Lieutenant Colonels Vitaly Orlov and Damir Garnayev, and Captain Dmitry Volobuev, also implicated. The latter is accused of issuing the direct order to strike. Ukrainian authorities stressed the deliberate nature of the attack, underscoring the ongoing investigation into those responsible.
Elsewhere, the aftermath of previous strikes continues to be felt. The National Police reported that the death toll from the November 19 missile strike on Ternopil had risen to 35 after DNA identification confirmed the loss of a 73-year-old resident. Five people remain missing, including a child, and approximately 94 were injured—18 of them children. Six of the confirmed dead were also children, highlighting the devastating impact of Russia’s campaign on Ukraine’s civilian population.
Reports of war crimes persist. On November 28, the Donetsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office revealed that Russian soldiers executed a captured Ukrainian soldier after beating him with an assault rifle near Hnativka earlier in the month. According to prosecutors, the Ukrainian servicemember was tied up, beaten in the head with an automatic weapon, and then shot when he stopped responding. “The intentional killing of a prisoner of war is a breach of the Geneva Conventions and constitutes a serious war crime,” the prosecutor’s office stated. An investigation is underway to determine the full circumstances and identify those responsible.
The conflict’s reach extends far beyond the front lines. Overnight on November 28, Ukraine’s General Staff said its forces struck the Saratov oil refinery in Russia and a drone storage facility at the Saky airfield in Russian-occupied Crimea. The refinery, which produces more than 20 petroleum products for the Russian military, was set ablaze, though the extent of the damage is still being assessed. In Crimea, Ukrainian forces destroyed Russian air defenses—including Pantsir S1 and Tor-M2 missile systems—before targeting a hangar storing long-range Forpost and Orion drones. Additional strikes targeted concentrations of Russian troops and fuel depots in occupied Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, further stretching Russian supply lines.
Civilian areas have not been spared. In Dnipropetrovsk region on November 27, Russian drone strikes killed a 61-year-old man and injured a 52-year-old woman in the Pokrov community, as confirmed by regional governor Vladyslav Haivanenko on Telegram and reported by Mezha. The attacks damaged two private houses, a car, and a gas pipeline in the Petropavlivska and Slovianska communities. In Nikopol, Russian forces deployed FPV drones to strike further targets. These repeated assaults have left families homeless and caused significant destruction to housing and infrastructure across the region. Ukrainian authorities and international organizations have condemned these attacks as deliberate war crimes, calling for ongoing international monitoring and a swift response.
The violence is widespread. Over just 24 hours, Russian attacks killed at least one person and injured 20 others across Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kharkiv, Sumy, and Donetsk oblasts. In Dnipropetrovsk, a Russian glide bomb killed a man and injured a woman in the Pokrov community. In Kherson, 13 people were injured in a single day. In Kharkiv, a woman and a 12-year-old boy were wounded in Motuzivka. In Sumy, two women were hurt by shelling in the Seredyna-Buda community. Donetsk saw injuries in Sloviansk and Kostiantynivka. The scale of attacks, involving Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 72 drones, underscores the persistent threat to Ukrainian civilians.
Adding a chilling dimension to the conflict, Daily NK reported on November 27 that North Korean soldiers fighting in Ukraine have been encouraged by their command to use grenades to kill themselves rather than face capture. Political instructors reportedly praise those who "blow themselves up" as heroes, urging others to "learn from the warriors who blew themselves up" and repeating slogans like "if you give your life, you live forever." These messages are delivered in political classes at least twice a week, glorifying sacrifice and reinforcing loyalty to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
The cost of war is staggering. As of November 28, Ukraine’s General Staff estimated that Russia has lost approximately 1,170,790 troops since the full-scale invasion began on February 24, 2022. The toll includes 1,100 casualties in just the past day. Russian equipment losses are equally severe: 11,380 tanks, 23,643 armored fighting vehicles, 68,399 vehicles and fuel tanks, 34,730 artillery systems, 1,550 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,253 air defense systems, 430 airplanes, 347 helicopters, 85,237 drones, 28 ships and boats, and one submarine.
While the numbers are immense, the stories behind them are deeply personal—of lives lost, families uprooted, and communities forever changed. The war in Ukraine is not just a contest of military might, but a struggle for survival and justice in the face of relentless aggression.
