Russia’s Wagner militant group claimed responsibility for Monday’s seizure of Bakhmut’s town hall, saying the takeover meant it now controlled the city.in a legal sense“Ukraine, for its part, assures that it still maintains this location in the east of the country, where fierce battles have been going on for months.
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“In the legal sense, Bakhmut was captured. The enemy is concentrated in the western regionsWagner’s manager Yevgeny Prigogine said on Telegram. A video accompanying his message shows him flying the Russian flag in honor of Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, a staunch defender of the offensive in Ukraine, who was killed in a bomb blast on Sunday. According to the authorities, 25 people were injured as a result of the attack in the cafe located in the historical center of Saint Petersburg.
“Raise this flag”
“The commanders of the units occupying the city hall and the entire center will go to raise this flagYevgeny Prigozhin said. “Here is the private military company “Wagner”, here are the guys who took Bakhmut. Legally, it’s ours“, he declares.
The General Staff of Ukraine claimed the opposite. “The enemy did not stop the attack on Bakhmut. However, Ukrainian defenders bravely hold the city, repelling numerous enemy attacks“, the staff of Ukraine announced on its Facebook page on Sunday evening. “Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka remain at the center of hostilitieshe added in an update early Monday. “The enemy does not stop its attacks on Bakhmut, trying to completely control it. Our soldiers repelled more than 20 enemy attacks“, he continued.
Before the conflict, the city of Bakhmut, home to about 70,000 residents, had been the scene of particularly fierce fighting for months. Due to the duration of the fighting and the heavy losses suffered by both sides, the city has become a symbol of the struggle between the Russians and the Ukrainians for control of the industrial region of Donbass. Russian troops have advanced north and south of the city in recent months, cutting off several Ukrainian supply routes and capturing its eastern part. On March 20, Eugene Prigogine claimed that Wagner controlled 70% of Bakhmut.
Ukraine sees the battle for Bakhmut as critical to containing Russian forces across the eastern front, even if analysts have limited assessment of the city’s strategic importance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted in his speech on Sunday evening that the situation in Bakhmut is difficult for his troops.
“it’s hot!»
“I am grateful to our fighters fighting near Avdiivka, Marinka and Bakhmut. Especially Bakhmut! It’s particularly hot there today.said Vladimir Zelensky. The situation in the regionalways very tense“Before the statement of the head of Wagner, Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Ganna Maliar emphasized on Sunday. “The enemy is trying to engage not only Wagner fighters, but also professional airborne units. Too many casualties do not stop the enemy“, he added.
According to the Ukrainian authorities, six people were killed and 11 injured in a Russian bombardment on Sunday in Kostantinivka, about 27 km from Bakhmut. These “just residential areas“, “ordinary citizens from an ordinary city of Donbasswho were targeted, responded President Zelensky. AFP reporters saw a large crater in the courtyard and windows in two 14-story buildings were shattered from the ground floor to the upper floors. The roofs of neighboring houses were destroyed.
The police claimed that Russia carried out in the morning “mass attackor six S-300 and Ouragan missile strikes. “Sixteen apartment buildings, eight private houses, a kindergarten, an administrative building, three cars and a gas pipeline.“In general, they suffered,” he emphasized.
Source: Le Figaro
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.