The Battle of Irpin was part of the Kyiv offensive in 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. ...

for control of the city of

Irpin Irpin ( uk, Ірпі́нь, ) is a Hero City of Ukraine located on the Irpin River in Bucha Raion, Kyiv Oblast (province) right next to the city of Kyiv in northern Ukraine. Irpin hosts the administration of Irpin urban hromada, one of the h ...

. The combatants were elements of the Russian Armed Forces and

Ukrainian Ground Forces The Ukrainian Ground Forces ( uk, Сухопу́тні військá Збрóйних сил Украї́ни), also known as the Ukrainian Army, are the land forces of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They ...

. The battle lasted from 27 February 2022 to 28 March 2022 and ended with Ukrainian forces recapturing the city. The battle was part of a larger tactic to encircle

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

, the capital city of

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. The armed forces of Ukraine resisted the Russian advance in the capital's western suburbs of Irpin, Bucha, and

Hostomel Hostomel ( uk, Гостомель, ) is a city in Bucha Raion, Kyiv Oblast, northwest of the capital city of Kyiv. It hosts the administration of Hostomel settlement hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The population of the settlement is app ...

. Irpin was named as one of the most dangerous places in the

Kyiv Oblast Kyiv Oblast ( uk, Ки́ївська о́бласть, translit=Kyïvska oblast), also called Kyivshchyna ( uk, Ки́ївщина), is an oblast (province) in central and northern Ukraine. It surrounds, but does not include, the city of Kyiv, w ...

by the Kyiv Oblast State Administration. The battle was marked by fierce urban fighting.

Prelude

On 25 February, Russian forces advanced on the suburb of

and its

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

from the northwest after partially breaking through Ukrainian defenses at Ivankiv, capturing the airport and establishing a foothold in the town. Though there was still ongoing Ukrainian resistance in Hostomel, Russian forces began to advance south to capture the neighboring cities of

and Bucha, with the goal of encircling Kyiv. Later that day, a Russian column was defeated by Ukrainian forces near Irpin. On 26 February, residents of Irpin reported that Russian saboteurs were disguising themselves as Ukrainian soldiers.

Battle

February

Transfer of civilians from Irpin to Kyiv due to Russian attacks

On 25 February, due a lack of communications with the main invasion command, a convoy of

OMON OMON (russian: ОМОН – Отряд Мобильный Особого Назначения , translit = Otryad Mobil'nyy Osobogo Naznacheniya , translation = Special Purpose Mobile Unit, , previously ru , Отряд Милиции Осо� ...

and SOBR units from the

Kemerovo Oblast Kemerovo Oblast — Kuzbass (russian: Ке́меровская о́бласть — Кузба́сс, translit=Kemerovskaya oblast — Kuzbass, ), also known simply as Kemerovo Oblast (russian: Ке́меровская о́бласть, label=non ...

accidentally separated from the invasion forces and ended up charging at Kyiv by themselves. The convoy was ambushed at a bridge over the

Irpin River The Irpin or Irpen (; ) is a river in Ukraine, a right tributary of the Dnieper river. It is long, and has a drainage basin of . Irpin city is one of the urban settlements beside the river. On 27 February, Ukrainian forces reported that

Russian Ground Forces The Russian Ground Forces (russian: Сухопутные войска �ВSukhoputnyye voyska V}), also known as the Russian Army (, ), are the land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces ...

had advanced into Bucha, breaking through the city and advancing towards Irpin. A tank battle ensued inside the city, while Ukrainian infantry engaged Russian paratroopers. Oleksandr Markushyn, the mayor of Irpin, stated that the Russian forces were attempting to break through the city, but were being repulsed by

and Territorial Defense Forces, with Ukrainian tank reinforcements coming from Bucha. Intense fighting occurred at a mall between Bucha and Irpin. Videos posted by Ukrainian soldiers showed a destroyed Russian

armored personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Ac ...

and at least six dead Russian soldiers. The Ukrainian forces used rockets, artillery, and airstrikes to halt the Russian advance, and destroyed a bridge connecting Bucha and Irpin. On 28 February 2022, Ukrainian official

Oleksiy Arestovych Oleksii Mykolaiovych Arestovych ( uk, Олексій Миколайович Арестович; born 3 August 1975) is a Ukrainian intelligence officer, blogger, actor, political and military columnist, and propagandist. He was a speaker of th ...

stated that Ukrainian forces attacked Russian forces on Highway M06 in the morning and that more than 200 Russian vehicles were destroyed or damaged by the afternoon.

March

1–5 March 2022

Infrastructure of the University of the State Tax Service of Ukraine in Irpin damaged by Russian shelling

On 2 March 2022, two Russian Sukhoi Su-25s conducted airstrikes in Irpin. Two missiles struck a residential building, killing a child and injuring a woman. One of the Su-25s was shot down by Ukrainian forces. The jet was identified to be part of the Russian

18th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment The 18th Guards Assault Aviation Vitebsk twice Red Banner, the Order of Suvorov and the French Cross of the Order of the Legion of Honor Regiment "Normandie-Niemen" (''18-й гвардейский штурмовой авиационный пол ...

. Ukrainian military officials reported that Russian forces had begun to lose momentum, taking significant casualties and being stopped at "unfavorable borders". On 3 March 2022, the Kyiv Oblast State Administration announced that the Ukrainian government was sending humanitarian aid to Bucha and Irpin, as well announcing evacuations in both cities. More than 1,500 women and children were reported to have evacuated by train, while 250 were evacuated by bus. However, Ukrainian officials reported that the evacuations were complicated as some railway tracks had been destroyed during fighting.

Valerii Zaluzhnyi Valerii Fedorovych Zaluzhnyi ( uk, Вале́рій Фе́дорович Залу́жний; born 8 July 1973) is a Ukrainian four-star general who has served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since 27 July 2021. He is ...

, the

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Головнокомандувач Збройних сил України, Holovnokomanduvach Zbroynykh syl Ukrayiny) is the professional head of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The positi ...

, announced that a Russian

Sukhoi Su-30 The Sukhoi Su-30 (russian: Сухой Су-30; NATO reporting name: Flanker-C/G/H) is a twin-engine, two-seat supermaneuverable fighter aircraft developed in the Soviet Union by Russia's Sukhoi Aviation Corporation. It is a multirole fighter ...

fighter jet was shot down over Irpin by Ukrainian air defenses on 3 March. On 5 March 2022, Ukrainian forces began to evacuate civilians from Irpin towards Kyiv on foot, though a destroyed bridge complicated efforts.

6–10 March 2022

On 6 March 2022, Russian forces captured part of Irpin. In the morning,

Oleksiy Kuleba Oleksiy Volodymyroyvch Kuleba (Ukrainian: Олексій Володимирович Кулеба; b. 8 August 1983) is a Ukrainian politician. He has served as Governor of Kyiv Oblast since 21 May 2022. He was the deputy Governor of Kyiv Oblast ...

, the city's Ukrainian military commander, stated that many evacuation routes out of the city were unsafe. During a civilian evacuation later that day, 8 civilians, including 2 children, were killed when Russian forces shelled the evacuation road by Russian mortar units. A Ukrainian artillery position was located nearby. According to

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

, the Russian shelling may have violated their obligations under international humanitarian law. The organization also stated that Ukrainian similarly had an obligation to prevent civilian casualties by not operating military actions in civilian areas. Ukrainian soldier Pavlo Lee, an actor who had joined the Territorial Defense Forces, was later killed by Russian shelling. On 8 March, Markushyn, who was commanding part of the Ukrainian forces in the city, stated that Russian forces demanded him to surrender the city, which he rejected, saying, "Irpin can't be bought, Irpin fights". On 9 March 2022, as Russian troops were seen patrolling streets in Irpin. Ukrainian forces conducted a large-scale evacuation across

, including in Irpin. Up to 20,000 civilians were evacuated in Kyiv Oblast. Later, the Kyiv Oblast State Administration stated that fighting in Irpin continued during the night.

13–14 March 2022

On 13 March, Russian forces at a checkpoint shot at a car carrying foreign journalists, killing American journalist

Brent Renaud Brent Anthony Renaud (October 2, 1971 – March 13, 2022) was an American journalist, documentary filmmaker, and photojournalist. Renaud worked with his brother Craig to produce films for outlets such as HBO and Vice News, and was a former co ...

and injuring two other journalists. Renaud was carrying press credentials issued by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', though he had not worked for the publication since 2015. On 14 March, , a member of Irpin City Council, stated that half of Irpin was occupied by Russian forces.

23–24 March 2022

On 23 March, Markushyn claimed that Ukrainian forces were in control of 80 percent of the city, while

France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

reported Ukrainian forces on the ground acknowledged that Russia controlled half of the city.

28 March 2022

On 28 March, Markushyn claimed on social media that Irpin had been recaptured by Ukrainian forces. After initial uncertainty,

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was esta ...

confirmed the city was under Ukrainian control on 30 March, with

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

also confirming Ukrainian control of the city on 31 March.

References

{{coord missing, Ukraine Kyiv offensive (2022)

February 2022 events in Ukraine March 2022 events in Ukraine