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The Ukrainian special forces launched a "daring" raid on the Russian-controlled Black Sea stronghold in the Tendra Spit region using both terrestrial and naval units.
Knewz.com has learned that the amphibious raid was carried out in the early hours of Tuesday, August 6.
Tendra Spit, a narrow sand bank, is the mouth of the Dnipro River near Kherson, located in the northern part of the Black Sea.
Early morning on Tuesday, the naval unit of the Ukrainian Main Directorate of Intelligence and soldiers from the Artan Active Action Unit landed at the Russian stronghold and carried out a swift operation.
During the raid, Ukrainian special forces destroyed Russian military equipment and fortifications at the base, including an MT-LB amphibious armored fighting vehicle and an electronic warfare system.
The special forces also encountered enemy forces at the base, and reports suggest that the Russian side saw significant personnel losses as a result of the altercation.
The Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine shared a report of the August 6 raid, which mentioned that the "military spies retreated without loss" after completing their operation.
The Ukrainian military intelligence also shared cinematic footage of the early morning raid on social media, which showed its naval unit arriving at the Tendra Spit.
Once at the narrow strip of land, special force operatives can be seen approaching the Black Sea stronghold in complete darkness.
The pitch-black footage is occasionally lightened up by what appear to be explosions as relentless gunfire can be heard throughout the later part of the video.
"On August 6, 2024, the special forces of the active action unit “Artan” and the Naval Center GUR MO [the Main Directorate of Intelligence] of Ukraine carried out an operation in the northern part of the Black Sea," the Ukrainian military intelligence said in a press release published a day after the operation.
"At night, a landing group of special forces landed on the Tendrovsky Spit and destroyed enemy armored equipment, including MT-LB, the enemy's EW complex, and destroyed Russian fortifications."
"During the battle, Russian invaders suffered casualties among personnel — the exact number is being clarified," the statement from the department added.
"After completing the task, in particular the secret part of it, military spies retreated without loss."
While the Ukrainian military intelligence described the operation as a success, pro-Russian military bloggers begged to differ.
For instance, milblogger Rybar Force wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter:
"Around 3 a.m., 12 boats with AFU [Armed Forces of Ukraine] troops moved towards the spit, intending to carry out a landing. As a result of a brief battle, the first three boats were destroyed – they were washed ashore. The remaining nine turned back and headed in the opposite direction."
The blogger added in a separate tweet that the Ukrainian Special Forces lost a total of 20 personnel in the "failed" raid, although he did not provide any evidence to support his claims.
Notably, the raid on the Black Sea stronghold coincided with the Ukrainian assault on Russian military positions along the border, near the settlements of Nikolaevo-Darino and Oleshnya in the Kursk region.
According to the report shared by the Russian Defense Ministry, the Ukrainian assault in Kursk is being supported by 11 tanks and over 20 armored vehicles, according to Russian estimates.
"Troops covering the state border, together with units of the border troops of the FSB [Federal Security Service] of Russia, repulse attacks and inflict fire on the enemy in the area of the state border and reserves in the Sumy region [the city of Ukraine on the other side of the Kursk border]," the Russian Defense Ministry wrote on Telegram.
It has been reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin called Ukraine's successful incursion across the Kursk border a "large-scale provocation."
Speaking to government officials on August 7, a day after the attack, the Russian autocrat said:
"We will have to start with the events in Kursk Region. As is known, the Kyiv [sic] regime has undertaken another large-scale provocation: it is indiscriminately firing from various types of weapons, including missiles, at civilian buildings, residential buildings, and ambulances."
"Immediately after our meeting, I will have a meeting with the heads of law enforcement agencies, the Ministry of Defense, the General Staff, the FSB – I mean the border direction of the Federal Security Service. And I will hear another report from my colleagues on what is happening in Kursk Oblast," Putin further said.
It is also worth noting that hours before fighting ensued in Kursk, Ukrainian air defenses managed to thwart a Russian airstrike on the capital city of Kyiv by shooting down two Iskander-M or KN-23 ballistic missiles, two Kh-59 guided air missiles, and 15 Shahed drones.