Ukraine Lures Russian Elite Special Forces Into Deadly Ambush, Wipes Out Two Groups

Ukrainian military intelligence operatives neutralized two groups of Russian special forces during a counter-sabotage operation in the Zaporizhzhia direction, capturing one Russian soldier after identifying the units’ movements and setting up an ambush.

According to Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Directorate (HUR) on October 11, the operation was carried out by members of its Timur Special Unit against personnel from Russia’s 10th Separate Guards Special Purpose Brigade, a formation affiliated with Russian military intelligence.

Ukrainian intelligence officers identified the composition of both Russian groups and tracked their movement routes using intelligence gathered from human sources, including individuals within Russian forces, alongside technical reconnaissance capabilities.

Based on this information, Ukrainian operatives positioned themselves along the identified routes and organized an ambush. Once the Russian personnel entered the targeted area, Ukrainian forces opened fire and subsequently conducted a clearing operation.

HUR confirmed that one Russian special forces soldier was taken prisoner. The agency did not specify how many Russian personnel were killed or wounded during this particular engagement.

The targeted 10th Separate Guards Special Purpose Brigade is a regular Russian military intelligence formation whose personnel previously participated in Russia’s wars against Georgia and Ukraine, as well as Moscow’s military intervention in Syria.

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War in Ukraine

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According to Ukrainian intelligence, members of the brigade had already been documented operating in temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories in 2014 and 2015, during the early stages of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine.

HUR also provided broader figures for the Timur Special Unit’s operations in the Zaporizhzhia direction. According to the agency, Ukrainian intelligence personnel have inflicted 448 irreversible Russian personnel losses and captured another 85 Russian soldiers over the course of the operation.

Earlier, in March 2026, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence reported that fighters from its Khymera unit, had cleared Russian infantry positions in the Zaporizhzhia direction. At the time, the unit had reportedly inflicted more than 300 Russian casualties, including killed and wounded personnel, and captured 39 soldiers during defensive operations in the area.

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