In a recurring nightmare, horrors usually repeat themselves. For the Ukrainian border town of Vovchansk, they’re getting worse. Every street seems aflame. The shelling is constant. Torn up tanks and Humvees litter its streets. Small arms fire can be heard as Russian forces inch forwards. Locals in the town lived through occupation and liberation for seven grueling months in 2022. But now they bear the brunt of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s race to grab as much land as he can before Ukraine eventually feels the benefit of US weapons arriving. Moscow on Friday launched its most surprising operation since the initial invasion, crossing Ukraine’s northern border, in a repeat attempt to push south towards the country’s second most-populous city. The devastating weight of the offensive has torn Vovchansk up. The Russian military claims the action has left close to a dozen villages under its control. Most consequentially, Kyiv is now…
