Bakhmut in ruins like "doomsday" amid fierce fighting between Russia and Ukraine

Almost no house in Bakhmut remains intact (Photo: Business Insider).

Business Insider on March 28 posted a video of the city of Bakhmut from above after months of fierce fighting between Russia and Ukraine.

Russia began shelling Bakhmut last May and has stepped up efforts to take control of the stronghold in recent months.

The fighting has now entered urban areas. Ukrainian officials say the city is almost destroyed, with “no building left intact”.

The latest video shows the devastation in the city. Many houses have collapsed, while smoke rises from destroyed buildings. From above, Bakhmut looks like "the end of the world".

Bakhmut is in ruins like "doomsday" amid fierce fighting between Russia and Ukraine (Video: BI).

Both Russia and Ukraine suffered serious losses as they mobilized resources to fight each other for every meter of land in this fiery cauldron.

Although Russia has begun to encircle Bakhmut from all directions and Wagner has declared control of the eastern part of the city, Ukraine has shown its determination not to withdraw its troops from Bakhmut and has stepped up reinforcements for its frontline forces. Ukraine hopes that Bakhmut will serve as a place to wear down Russia’s best units. However, experts warn that Ukraine may be affected in its upcoming counterattack plans by concentrating too many resources and elite soldiers on Bakhmut.

In a related development, Denis Pushilin, leader of the separatist Donetsk region, said that Russian forces were gaining momentum in the city of Bakhmut despite fierce resistance from their opponents. Mr. Pushilin said that Russia had almost complete control of the AZOM metallurgical plant on the west bank of the Bakhmutka River.

Earlier, Russian media reported over the weekend that the Wagner private military group had taken control of AZOM. According to Mr. Pushilin, the Ukrainian soldiers entrenched at the AZOM plant are now only isolated groups and Wagner is pushing them back.

Capturing AZOM is important because the plant is heavily fortified to withstand outside attacks. Additionally, AZOM has a network of links to other areas of Bakhmut. So as long as Ukraine controls the plant, they will be able to launch a surprise attack on the Russian-held position.

"Wagner is gaining momentum, although it is taking a lot of effort to do so. They have made it difficult for Ukraine to get weapons, troops and even evacuate wounded soldiers. The situation is very difficult for Ukraine because the roads to Bakhmut are under Russian fire control," he said.

Ukraine has not commented on this information. Previously, Ukraine announced that they had stabilized the situation in Bakhmut. The commander of the Ukrainian army Oleksandr Syrskyi said that the fiercest fighting continued, stressing that the defense of Bakhmut was a military necessity.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/bakhmut-do-nat-nhu-ngay-tan-the-giua-luc-nga-ukraine-giao-tranh-khoc-liet-20230328212456039.htm