Reporting
War in Ukraine: 15km from Bakhmout, the last civilians between terror and resignation
Audio 01:31
After a bombardment in Chassiv Yar, near Bakhmout, on February 28, 2023. AFP - DIMITAR DILKOFF
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
The situation remains extremely tense in Bakhmout, in eastern Ukraine.
The paramilitary group Wagner continues its breakthrough and, according to the commander of the Ukrainian land forces, threatens to succeed in its bet: to encircle and seize this city which has become a symbol of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
15km from Bakhmout, the last civilians oscillate between terror and resignation.
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With our special correspondents in Tchassiv Yar
,
Vincent Souriau and Julien Boileau
There are only whiteheads here, a dozen old people tweaking their hands and jumping at each detonation.
No choice.
If they came to this 50m² room in the center of Chassiv Yar, it was because the Russian shells ruined their home.
"
Most of them are retirees who have no more electricity, they need to charge their phones and recover their health because there is no more heating at home
", testifies Vadim, whose job is to welcome them, fuel the wood-burning stoves and serve tea, as if nothing had happened.
He also shows us a list, that of the evacuations.
People who pass by, he says, can register and are exfiltrated by volunteers in the days that follow.
► To read also:
Near Bakhmout, evacuations are now managed by the army
Outside, no longer a living soul...
But for this terrified grandmother who was talking to herself on her bench, it's the last straw: “
And where am I going to go?
Who am I going to go to?
And how ?
I prefer to die here.
They shoot everywhere anyway, everywhere!
I lost my son, I'm not going anywhere, they can do what they want, I'm not going anywhere.
Why do you want to force me to go and die somewhere else, like a dog?
My nerves are giving way, I can't take this anymore, "evacuation, evacuation, evacuation"...
"
Outside, there is no longer a living soul.
The city is deserted and the atmosphere saturated by Ukrainian artillery spraying the outskirts of Bakhmout, 15 kilometers away.
► To read also: The Russians attacking Bakhmout
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