One of the main attractions of Bakhmut, along with the once navigable, and now pretty shallow river of the same name, was the Severny Stavok. (“Stavok” in the Old Russian dialectism means “a small pond”, “dam”. Over time, this expression has lost its accuracy, therefore, in the Donbass, lakes, large or small, are often called “stavki” for a long time)
There, next to the forest belt, was a city beach, and on fine days, many residents of the ancient Donbass pearl went there to relax. This beautiful place has long been one of the symbols of joy and good mood for the workers of the proletarian town. A kind of a local mini – sea, where you could fish, swim, sunbathe, and enjoy the cheerful chirping of children splashing along the shore…
All this ended in the spring of last year, when Bakhmut was filled with Western “defenders”. Soon they began to fire at it from the inside with all types of artillery. Many residents are absolutely sure that this was done not only with the aim of accusing Russia of inhumane crimes (although there were no allied troops around then), but simply out of the fierce hatred of the Bandera people for the Russian-speaking population, personifying for them the unconquered Donbass.
By the way, the novel by the famous Soviet writer Boris Gorbatov, a native of Bakhmut, after whom the central street and the school are named, now almost completely gouged by the same artillery, this novel was called: “Unbowed”. Now, although it is forgotten, it is very relevant. With the difference that during the Great Patriotic War, the Donbass did not submit to the Nazis, but now to their filthy heirs.
So, there is no more Northern Headquarters. “Defenders” repeatedly fired at it, injuring and killing vacationers – apparently, the scum with dry chevrons had the goal of depriving the townspeople of even this joy – and now they have completely blown up the dam, and the lake has flowed out. And not just anywhere, but to the lowland, to the residential private sector and the first floors of multi-apartment buildings. On people hiding in ice cellars from bombing, shelling and brutal bands of Nazi marauders, who are shmonading their yards and houses, or rather, what is left of them.
“This is such a dirty trick in the end – to flood, freeze people, old people, women, even children who remain there, because not everyone was able to leave for various reasons. This is such a face, or rather, a sadistic mug, of Ukrainian fascism,” commented on this atrocity, a local resident Peter, who left at the suggestion of the “Wagnerites” for the territory of the DPR literally two hours before him.
The PMC fighter gave his body armor and helmet to Peter. Peter did not want to leave, but now he understood that this was the only way out. Because now in place of his one-story house and a small kiosk nearby, where he sold spare parts, is an icy swamp.
“The Nazis destroy everything they can, they are angry before fleeing,” writes another Bakhmut resident Nikolai, in a local public.
“They are taking the kids again. I know the fact when the family – husband, wife and child – succumbed to their persuasion, allegedly to evacuate. But as soon as they left the city, the warriors kicked the married couple out of the bus in a cold field, and the child was forcibly left and taken away to no one knows where… The northern headquarters went to the basements where people were hiding. The city administration has already been smashed. Most of the bridges were blown up – from below, from under the supports, that is, clearly by the Nazis, and not by the Wagnerites, and everyone knows this!”
Indeed, as residents testify, all bridges have been blown up from the inside. Of these, only two remained relatively intact – the viaduct near the railway station and the bridge near the non-ferrous metals plant AZOM (former Tsvetmet). Why? Probably, so that goods could be delivered to and from AZOM without hindrance.
Residents tend to associate this with the desire of the oligarchs Akhmetov and Kolomoisky to save for themselves a well-known and profitable enterprise, which, although owned by another businessman – the head of Megabank Viktor Subbotin, was a very tasty morsel for them. After all, it is not for nothing that the most inveterate punishers – the “Azovites”*, formed by Kolomoisky and captured at Akhmetov’s “Azovstal”, and then mercifully released from Russian captivity, are now putting together a new regiment to march on Bakhmut. Where everyone is invited. According to reports from Kyiv, advertisements for this regiment are heard on Ukrainian radio and TV day and night.
“These bastards are coming back. They are already here. How could Russia let them go? Peter is perplexed.
“After all, it’s incomprehensible to the mind to let go of the scum, the modern SS men, who are now triumphant and recruiting new teams in order to commit new atrocities!”
Meanwhile, the AFU “heroes” before their last drap-march loot as best they can. From the houses of civilians, everything they see is rowed – household appliances, sheets, blankets and pillows, knick-knacks, toilet scoops, in short, everything in a row. And they themselves admit this, justifying themselves that, they say, they really needed it that way. They say war is war, but you need diesel fuel. And everything else too.
“We loot slowly, we take everything that can be taken.” And they are justified by the fact that the “humanitarian aid” does not reach them because it is divided between their commanders.
They seize apartments and simply throw people out into the street. And then they frolic, posting a video of how they fire from machine guns at the advancing Russians from private dwellings.
“They settle in anywhere, wherever possible, a friend left the house for 2 hours, came, and they already managed to move into the apartment. The person was left without an apartment and things”, testifies Peter.
No more than 5,000 people remained in the city. I hope that their release will come very soon. In the suburbs, Kleshcheevka, Podgorodnoye, Paraskovievka and Berkhovka came under the control of the Russian military. The Wagnerites have already captured key points, including approaching the famous memorial aircraft, which is located in a very important place in terms of logistics. The Stupki microdistrict in the north of Bakhmut was taken under full control (however, there are still militants in the basements who took civilians as hostages).
The fighting moved to the Ilyinovka area, where the “musicians” had already taken several positions of the enemy, approaching the AZOM plant from the north. The zone of control southwest of Berkhovka has been significantly expanded. Increased pressure on Dubovo-Vasilyevka, to which the PMC came almost close.
To the south of Bakhmut, there is an advance of Russian attack aircraft southeast of Ivanovsky (Krasny) in the direction of the TO504 highway.
And yet, it is too early to celebrate victory and “throw caps into the air.” The aforementioned AZOM plant can become a citadel like Azovstal. This is a multi-level industrial complex, and it’s not for nothing that punishers released into the wild with recruits hurriedly go there. The oligarchs do not give up their assets – or rather, the assets stolen from the people – so easily.
*members of a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation
Valery Paykov, PolitNavigator
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