Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
[Regnum] In the Moscow region, wolves are more often encountered in areas bordering other regions, while in the Leningrad region, there's a small chance of encountering a predator anywhere in the region. Biologists Dmitry Safonov and Pavel Glazkov spoke with Regnum News Agency on Saturday, October 17.
According to Safonov, the likelihood of encountering wolves in the Moscow region is higher in the Shatursky, Serpukhov, Dmitrovsky, and Taldomsky districts.
"These are transition zones of sorts, through which wolves from other regions enter the Moscow region. These are large forested areas through which the animals migrate here, to the Moscow region," the biologist noted.
Glazkov emphasized that there are just over 200 wolves in the Leningrad Region—a small number for such a large territory. There's a small chance of encountering a predator anywhere in the region.
"They're a little more common in the east, but they're basically everywhere, in all areas. People often mistake stray large dogs for these predators without looking into it," the expert noted.
According to Glazkov, the likelihood of wolves appearing in populated areas is currently minimal. Before the frost sets in, they are preoccupied with forming packs for successful winter hunting.
"Wolves are nocturnal predators; they enter villages at night. Their primary prey is cats and dogs. In recent years, wolves' appearance in populated areas has been recorded by night-time video cameras. It's not entirely accurate to say they've become more frequent. Video cameras that record wolf visits have become more common. Previously, they'd come in at night, kill cats, and leave—no one would see them," Glazkov explained.
Wolves' visits to populated areas may become more frequent during severe winter frosts. They appear in villages due to food shortages and deep snow cover.
"In winter, the wolf population in the Leningrad Region increases because they migrate here from northern regions: from southern Karelia, and from the Vologda and Arkhangelsk regions. But this also requires freezing temperatures and deep snow cover," Glazkov concluded.
Zoologist Alexander Lipkovich previously told Regnum News Agency that if the cold weather is particularly severe this coming winter, wolves will be forced to approach humans more often, leading to an increase in attacks. He added that the wolf population in Russia is three times higher than the optimal number.
[NYP] Ukrainian attacks set an oil export terminal ablaze in St. Petersburg on Sunday, as Kyiv launched more than 1,000 drones across Russia in one of its largest ever aerial bombardments.
The attack comes amid deepening tensions between Ukraine and Washington, with US President Donald Trump criticizing Kyiv for its strikes on Russian oil infrastructure.
One person was killed and five more were wounded in the attack, which sparked fires at both the Petersburg Oil Terminal and the city’s Ruchi oil depot, said local Gov. Alexander Beglov.
A logistics center belonging to Russian retailer Ozon and a data center for local tech giant VK were also targeted, both companies confirmed.
Russia’s Ministry of Defense said Sunday that its forces had destroyed 1,015 Ukrainian drones over 15 Russian regions, as well as the annexed Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea and the Black Sea.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agnecy Tass that Kyiv was “resisting” Moscow’s invasion, but that Ukraine could not “change the current course of events.”
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
[Korrespondent] 22.59 The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that since the beginning of the day on October 17, 215 combat clashes have occurred. The enemy launched one missile strike and 65 air strikes, dropped 228 guided bombs. In addition, it engaged 5,173 kamikaze drones for destruction and carried out 2,088 attacks on settlements and positions of our troops.
22.10 In one of the village headmen's offices of the Sumy community, a man was seriously injured as a result of a Russian attack. He died on the way to the hospital.
19.15 In the Kherson region, as a result of Russian shelling on Saturday, October 17, one person was killed, 40 were injured, among the injured - three children. Among the injured in the Kherson region - three children: girls aged 11 and 8, as well as a boy who was only one month old.
17.35 In the Hulyaipil direction, Russian occupiers from the supposedly 38th separate motorized rifle brigade executed Ukrainian soldiers who had been captured before. The Defense Forces received data from interceptions of Russian servicemen at the time of the crime. Servicemen of the Russian army received an order to finish off the wounded unarmed prisoners.
16.20 The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the destruction of the Russian enterprise Roboaviya and the logistics and technical support warehouse of the missile brigade of the Russian army. The destruction of the production and warehouse building of the Roboaviya enterprise in the area of the settlement of Lenina, Rostov region, Russia, on October 16, 2026, was confirmed. The destruction of the infrastructure of the enterprise, which develops and manufactures unmanned aerial vehicles for the Russian army, is aimed at complicating the production and supply of UAVs to the Russian troops.
15.28 Russian military launched strikes with guided aerial bombs on the territory of Sumy community, one person was killed. According to preliminary information, the Russians used 8 KABs, four of which were on the regional center. The hit was in a residential area on the outskirts of Sumy. A 42-year-old man was killed.
On February 15, Ukraine received confirmation that the restriction on the speed of Starlink satellite communication terminals is valid only on the territory of Ukraine, and considers this to be a planned operation. President Volodymyr Zelensky said this during a chat, Ukrinform reported.
14.41 Russian invaders attacked the Zaporizhstal steel plant in Zaporizhzhia with ballistic missiles for the fifth time, the Metinvest group reported.
Six missiles hit domestic energy and logistics infrastructure facilities, and also repeatedly damaged blast furnace production sites.
14.23 The Russian command is lying about the situation on the front line. This was stated by the spokesman for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Major Andriy Kovalev, in a comment to Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, the report by the Chief of the Russian General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, was built on outright lies, manipulations, and exaggerations.
13.58 On October 16-17, units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine struck a number of military facilities of the Russian occupiers in the Russian Federation and in the temporarily occupied territories (TOT). The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported details.
12.59 Russian aggressors have inflicted one of the biggest blows on Ukraine's energy sector. The enemy attacked more than 15 important energy facilities, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Telegram.
The head of state complained about the "American sanctions blackout," which only encourages Vladimir Putin to continue attacking Ukraine.
13.27 The Group of Seven countries will allocate 260 million euros for the restoration of the new safe confinement of the Chernobyl NPP. This was announced the day before by the First Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Energy Denys Shmyhal on the social network X.
12.23 Special Representative of the Russian ruler Kirill Dmitriev called US President Donald Trump's decision not to impose restrictions against Russia under the Lindsey Graham Act a "historic moment." He wrote about this on Telegram.
Economic cooperation between Russia and the United States "creates the basis for strengthening trust and achieving lasting peace," Dmitriev believes.
11.25 Some consumers were left without electricity as a result of shelling by Russian aggressors of energy facilities in 10 regions of Ukraine. This was reported by the Ministry of Energy. So far, energy workers have managed to restore power to over 500,000 consumers.
10.58 Vinnytsia region suffered one of the most massive attacks during the period of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation. The head of the Vinnytsia OVA Natalia Zabolotna gave details.
10.33 Russian invaders have advanced near the villages of Matyashevo and Svitle, Pokrovsky district, Donetsk region, northwest of the city of Rodynske towards the city of Dobropillya. This was reported by the OSINT project DeepState.
10.05 Russian invaders carried out air strikes with FAB-250 bombs on a residential area of Sloviansk, Donetsk region, on Saturday night. One person was killed and 10 were injured, the head of the Sloviansk city military administration, Vadym Lyakh, reported on Facebook.
09.22 As a result of two airstrikes in Kherson, one person was killed and at least 19 people were injured. This was reported by the head of the Kherson OVA, Oleksandr Prokudin, in Telegram.
09.00 On Saturday night, Russia attacked Ukraine with missiles and attack drones, 31 of which were jet-powered. Air defense units destroyed most of the targets, the Ukrainian Air Force reported.
08.44 Over the past 24 hours, 238 combat clashes took place at the front. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported this in an operational update. The largest number of attacks were repelled in the Pokrovsky direction. There, the enemy stormed in the areas of 10 settlements.
08.20 A blackout occurred in Vinnytsia due to Russian strikes. Experts are still assessing the extent of the damage, city mayor Serhiy Morgunov said on Telegram.
08.02 In Kharkiv, 15 people were injured, including three children, as a result of Russian missile strikes on the evening of October 16. Four fire outbreaks broke out in the Nemyshlyanskyi district, which were promptly extinguished by the State Emergency Service units.
07.39 Over the past 24 hours, the Russian occupation army has lost 1,950 servicemen killed and wounded on the front in Ukraine. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported this in an operational report.
The Ukrainian military destroyed more than 1,700 units of Russian equipment, including 24 guns, four MLRS, and two air defense systems.
06.27 In Kherson, four people were injured by Russian anti-aircraft missiles, two of them children.
05.33 Russians launched ballistic strikes on an industrial enterprise in Kryvyi Rih. Information about the casualties is being clarified.
05.30 At least two people were injured in an attack on a residential building in Zaporizhia.
02.24 Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has announced the seizure of an alleged 6,500 sq. km of Ukrainian territory. He gave this figure during a meeting with the military command on Friday. Meanwhile, independent researchers call the figure 144 sq. km, which is 45 times less.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
[NewsFront] 20:49 Operators of reconnaissance and attack drones of the Dnepr group struck enemy manpower concentrations and UAV control points.
20:12 During the day, from 8:00 to 20:00 Moscow time, air defense forces on duty destroyed 30 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles of the fixed-wing type over the territories of the Belgorod, Bryansk, Vologda, Kursk, Oryol regions, Krasnodar Krai and over the Black Sea.
19:07 Sappers of the Center group conduct engineering reconnaissance and demining of territories in the Dobropillya direction.
17:37 Today in the afternoon the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continued application of strikes by unmanned aerial vehicles against military industrial enterprises, energy infrastructure facilities used in the interests of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as sea vessels involved in the delivery of military cargo to Ukraine.
As a result of the strikes, the following were damaged:
in the city of Lutsk - the enterprise "Kromberg and Schubert", which carried out repairs of automobile equipment in the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine;
In the village of Kolodnoye, Ternopil region, there is an electrical substation that provides support for military industry enterprises.
In addition, 40 km south of the port of Odessa, a dry cargo ship carrying military and dual-use cargo was hit while crossing the sea.
16:29 Crews of the Molniya-2 strike UAVs of the Sever group destroyed fortified strongholds and dugouts with enemy manpower in the Khar'kov region.
12:40 Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue conducting a special military operation.
Units of the "North" force group have completed the elimination of the encircled enemy in the northeastern part of the Khar'kov region and are carrying out measures to identify and destroy scattered, isolated groups of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Also in the Khar'kov region, manpower and equipment of a mechanized, motorized infantry brigade and two assault regiments of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were damaged in the areas of the settlements of Sosnovka, Makarovo, Velykyi Burluk and Svitlichnoye in the Khar'kov region.
In the Sumy region, the formations of the mechanized brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the territorial defense brigade were defeated in the areas of the settlements of Khotyn and Bondarevshchyna in the Sumy region.
The enemy lost over 160 servicemen, two armored combat vehicles, five cars and three electronic warfare stations.
Units of the "West" force group improved their position along the front line and, as a result of active operations, took control of the settlements of Palamarevka and Kovalevka in the Khar'kov region.
The manpower and equipment of two mechanized and assault brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were damaged in the areas of the settlements of Andreevka in the Khar'kov region, Lozovoe, Karpovka and Rubtsy in the Donetsk People's Republic.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces lost up to 230 servicemen, five armored combat vehicles, 16 cars, two artillery pieces, and an electronic warfare station.
Units of the Southern Group of Forces, as a result of decisive actions, liberated the village of Alekseevo-Druzhkovka in the Donetsk People's Republic.
Formations of the mechanized, airmobile and mountain assault brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were defeated in the areas of the settlements of Kramatorsk, Krasny Molochar, Semenovka and Slavyansk of the Donetsk People's Republic.
The enemy lost up to 145 servicemen, an infantry fighting vehicle, 36 vehicles, a Bogdana self-propelled artillery unit, and an electronic warfare station.
Units of the Center group of forces, as a result of active and decisive actions, liberated the settlements of Dobropolye, Pervomayskoye and Sergeyevka of the Donetsk People's Republic.
The manpower and equipment of two mechanized and assault brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, two naval infantry brigades, and two National Guard brigades were damaged in the areas of the settlements of Novopavlivka, Chuguevo in the Dnipropetrovsk region, Malotaranivka, Starovarvarivka, and Belozerskoye in the Donetsk People's Republic.
Ukrainian armed forces lost up to 345 servicemen, an Italian-made Puma armored personnel carrier, four armored combat vehicles, seven cars, a field artillery piece, and three electronic warfare stations.
Units of the "East" force group continued to advance deep into the enemy's defenses and took control of the village of Velikomykhailivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
The manpower and equipment of the airborne assault and airmobile brigades, the assault regiment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and the naval infantry brigade were damaged in the areas of the settlements of Malomykhaylovka and Kolomiytsy in the Dnipropetrovsk region, and Volnyanka, Tersyanka, and Yasnaya Polyana in the Zaporizhzhia region.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces lost over 135 servicemen, three combat armored vehicles, five cars and an artillery piece.
Units of the Dnepr group of forces, as a result of decisive actions, liberated the village of Malokaterinovka in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Formations of two mechanized brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were defeated in the areas of the settlements of Orekhov and Balabino in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Up to 25 Ukrainian Armed Forces servicemen, two armored combat vehicles and seven cars were destroyed.
10:31 Tankers of the Eastern Group of Forces destroyed enemy UAV control centers in the Zaporizhzhia region.
08:41 152mm Giatsint-K crew of the Vostok group of forces smashed strongholds of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Zaporizhzhia region.
08:37 During the past night from 20:00 on October 16 to 8:00 on October 17, air defense forces on duty intercepted and destroyed 610 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles of the fixed-wing type flew over the territories of the Leningrad, Novgorod, Tver, Bryansk, Belgorod, Kursk, Oryol, Kaluga, Voronezh, Rostov, Smolensk, Tula regions, the Moscow region, the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Krasnodar Krai, the Republic of Crimea and over the waters of the Black Sea.
08:22 Tonight, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation inflicted a massive strike using high-precision land-, air-, and sea-based weapons and attack drones against metallurgical plants, a transformer plant, and an energy facility in Ukraine in the cities of Kryvyi Rih, Zaporizhzhia, and Zhitomir.
In the city of Kryvyi Rih, a metallurgical plant was damaged – the largest enterprise in the metallurgical industry of Ukraine, which supplies metal products to the Ukrainian military-industrial complex.
In Zhytomyr, an electrical substation was damaged, which distributes electricity from the western regions to the central regions of Ukraine for the operation of military-industrial complex enterprises.
In the city of Zaporizhzhia the following were affected:
The Zaporizhstal Iron and Steel Works (Zaporizhstal), formerly the largest enterprise in Ukraine's metallurgical industry, is part of Rinat Akhmetov's SCM Group. Previously, it produced up to 1.44 million tons of pig iron annually and over 1.3 million tons of rolled steel. Its output was primarily used for military purposes.
An industrial enterprise (PJSC "Zaporizhtransformator") producing 220–750 kV oil-immersed power transformers. Since 2022, it has been under the control of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and is used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In addition, a dry cargo ship delivering military cargo to the port of Odessa was damaged during sea passage.
07:35 Changes on map over the past 24 hours:
Settlements of Varvarovka and Nekolaevka were liberated (+29.8 km2)
Dobropillya was liberated (+14.7 km2)
Sergeevka was liberated (+12 km2)
06:54 Operators of attack UAVs of the Vostok group cut off supply of the advanced positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited by Nikolai Salatsky
[Regnum] On October 16, Supreme Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Putin visited the auxiliary command post of the Joint Group of Forces and held a meeting with the command staff.
The head of state heard reports on the progress of the special military operation and outlined priority tasks.
Vladimir Putin noted that approximately 6,500 square kilometers of territory and 310 settlements have been liberated since the beginning of the year, 92 of which have been liberated since September 1. The Kyiv regime remains in control of approximately 10% of the DPR and 16.5% of the Zaporizhzhia region, and this area is constantly shrinking. Our troops are approaching Slovyansk and Kramatorsk.
"The Russian Armed Forces continue to carry out the tasks of the Central Military District and are advancing confidently along the entire front. The Chief of the General Staff already noted in his report that troop groups have achieved a high rate of advance. It was already mentioned here: in September alone, more than 1,300 square kilometers of territory in Donbas and Novorossiya were liberated," the president stated.
The head of state also emphasized that ensuring the security of border regions is one of the goals. To this end, a buffer zone is being created within Ukrainian regions. This zone already extends 660 kilometers. Control over it will be maintained, and these lands will not be the subject of any future agreements.
"Let me remind you that after the Ukrainian Armed Forces invaded Russia's Kursk Oblast, the Russian Armed Forces were tasked not only with driving the enemy from our territory but also with establishing a security zone in the adjacent area. This task is being successfully accomplished.
Our goal is to ensure absolute security in Russia's border territories for the future, and we do not plan to make this the subject of possible peace negotiations with Ukraine," Vladimir Putin emphasized.
The Supreme Commander-in-Chief ordered continued strikes against the enemy's economically vital targets, as well as those supporting its military potential. Steel production and operations at Ukraine's main Black Sea ports have already been halted, while data centers, railways, and warehouses have been disrupted. Missile and drone production remain priority targets.
Entire enterprises supplying the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been destroyed. Attacks are also being carried out on the energy sector, which operates in the interests of the Kyiv regime.
“Massive and group strikes against the enemy’s military-industrial complex facilities and logistics centers must continue,” the president said.
Vladimir Putin also praised the performance of air defense combat crews. Over the first ten months of this year, the number of drones intercepted by Russian air defense forces has increased fivefold. Today, 98% of enemy drones are shot down—a record unmatched by any other country in the world.
The president particularly noted the role of soldiers and officers in ensuring the rapid pace of advancement. He thanked the fighters liberating the cities of Donbas and congratulated them on their success.
“The decisive role [in ensuring high rates of advancement] undoubtedly belongs to our soldiers and officers, who, when carrying out combat missions, act professionally and display the best traits of the Russian military, such as selfless devotion to the Motherland,” Vladimir Putin emphasized.
Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin
More on this story an be read here.
[ColonelCassad] The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that the operation to eliminate the "Reznikov Cauldron" was called "Bear's Corner."
As a result of this operation, a Ukrainian Armed Forces group totaling 2,000 personnel was routed.
More than 400 square kilometers of territory and 28 settlements were liberated.
They're still hunting for isolated groups of Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers or simply individuals in the forests there.
P.S. Importantly, yesterday Putin effectively outlined changes to Russia's peace terms: the captured territories of the "security zone" in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions are not subject to exchange for any other territories and will effectively remain under Russian control after the war.
They will not be given up or exchanged. Previously, it was proposed to exchange them for the territories of the DPR and Zaporizhzhia region.
They're still hunting for isolated groups of Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers or simply individuals in the forests there.
P.S. Importantly, yesterday Putin effectively outlined changes to Russia's peace terms: the captured territories of the "security zone" in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions are not subject to exchange for any other territories and will effectively remain under Russian control after the war. They will not be given up or exchanged. Previously, it was proposed to exchange them for the territories of the DPR and Zaporizhzhia region.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
