Tavilzhanka ( uk, Тавільжанка, russian: Таволжанка, Tavolzhanka) is a village in Kupiansk Raion,

Kharkiv Oblast Kharkiv Oblast ( uk, Харківська́ о́бласть, translit=Kharkivska oblast), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna ( uk, Ха́рківщина), is an oblast (province) of eastern Ukraine. The oblast borders Russia to the north, Luhans ...

, Ukraine. During the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

, the village was occupied by Russian troops during their initial advance into the nation. After the success of the

2022 Ukrainian eastern counteroffensive The 2022 Ukrainian eastern counteroffensive is a counteroffensive by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory of Kharkiv Oblast, Donetsk Oblast, and Luhansk Oblast, that was launched on 6 September 2022. Following ...

, the village became disputed territory on 22 September, and would remain that way for some time, with Ukrainian forces possibly taking control by 27 December, according to the Institute for the Study of War. The recapture of the village most notably restored Ukrainian access to the P79 road above, which could potentially cut off supply to the Russian forces to the south in the Kharkiv Oblast, which made it a significant point of combat.

Geography

The village is surrounded by large areas of forests alongside the . After one kilometer, this river connects to the left tributary of the larger Oskil (river), downstream from the village of

Dvorichna Dvorichna ( uk, Дворічна, ) is an urban-type settlement in Kupiansk Raion, Kharkiv Oblast (province) of eastern Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Dvorichna settlement hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Population: History ...

, where the closest major railway station, , is located.

History

2022 Russian invasion

At the beginning of the

, Tavilzhanka was occupied by Russian troops in their initial advance into Ukraine. On 22 September 2022, prominent Russian milblogger Rybar reported that the Ukrainian armed forces reached and began fighting for the village in part of their Kharkiv counteroffensive, which had begun earlier in the month. Advancing from Horobivka and Dvorichna, further progress was made on 25 September by the Ukrainian forces when a foothold was established by nearby railroad tracks in the village. From 25 to 27 September, further fighting reported as "intense" took place in the western part of the village. Over the following months, it remained a contested frontline village, with control of the settlement unclear due to the fog of war, but likely trading hands between the two sides multiple times.

Demographics

In 2001, the village had 1924 residents, of whom 1792 spoke

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

, 108 Russian, 5 Hungarian, 3

Belarusian Belarusian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Belarus * Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent * A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus * Belarusian language * Belarusian culture * Belarusian cuisine * Byelor ...

, 9

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

, and 7 spoke other languages.

References

External links