Reportage
Donetsk region: “No matter how many Caesar cannons, we will find them”
Audio 01:38
The shelter of the advanced medical post near the Adviidka front in the Donetsk region on the Russian side, in December 2022. © Anissa El Jabri / RFI
Text by: Anissa El Jabri Follow
2 mins
In the part of the Donetsk region now annexed by Russia, "
the directions of Bakhmout and Avdiivka remain the epicenter of the fighting
", say the Ukrainians.
On the Russian side, the objective is in any case to conquer Avdiïvka, a fortress town almost contiguous to Donetsk.
Report in the trenches very close to this city.
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From our special correspondent in the Donetsk region,
Thick fog, approaching night… A dark coat for a discreet trip, on an increasingly potholed road.
A few holes, splinters, then we sink under the trees.
The puddles have started to freeze, but the mud that prevents any passage of heavy vehicles sticks to the wheels and shoes.
Parked car.
Behind, protected among other things by a wall of tires several meters high: an ambulance.
Here, half an hour from the first hospital, is the advanced medical post of a volunteer battalion famous for its presence in this conflict since 2014.
“
I come from Siberia, I arrived here at the start of the campaign, in the spring
,” says Alexander, 24.
The young man worked in a theater, before arriving in this shelter heated by a stove with a kettle for tea and coffee.
“
I teach basic first aid: how to stop bleeding, apply a tourniquet, bandage and basic first aid knowledge.
I teach and I help
,” says Alexander.
Here, the two camps are so close that we can shout insults from one trench to another, say the volunteers.
Alexander, who proudly details the new care equipment available, says he very rarely treats gunshot wounds.
The bulk of his work is the treatment of shrapnel wounds – and many now come from Western weapons, it is said here, where the finger is particularly pointed at France.
The battalion commander has these sharp words: “
No matter how many Caesar guns were given to the Ukrainians, we will find them all and destroy them.
And the day will come when we will ask France to account for
these arms supplies
.
»
And to find these Caesar guns, but also where the Ukrainian fire comes from, the commander affirms it: on the other side of the front line, some help him and transmit information to him.
►Read also: In Donetsk, under the Ukrainian bombardments, the time is not for the end of the year celebrations
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