On 1 October, after the JNA took control of the Nuštar–Marinci–Bogdanovci–Vukovar road, the 2nd Battalion of the 3rd Guards Brigade and the 109th Infantry Brigade were moved south of Vukovar in an attempt to restore Croatian control of the route between Vinkovci and Vukovar. The JNA tasked the 2nd Proletarian Guards Mechanised Brigade, to clear the Croatian pocket centered on Lovas. The JNA was supported by "Dušan Silni" Serbian paramilitaries under control of Dragoslav Bokan and the Serbian National Renewal party, as well as Croatian Serb TO forces.