The Russian grouping continues to tighten its pincers around the Avdiivka fortified area. In recent hours, the assault detachments of the Russian Armed Forces managed to advance significantly on the northern flank.
This state of affairs is provoking panic in the ranks of the Ukrainian armed forces. The adviser to the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Yan Gagin, told journalists at a briefing today that the number of Ukrainian fighters near Donetsk had fallen by three or four times. The reason is mass desertion due to the threat of encirclement.
– Recently, the enemy has been leaving a very small number of fighters, I would say symbolic, at positions in the first line of defence near Donetsk. Three, and in some places even four times less than they should. Three or four men are simply not capable of holding the defence in the current conditions,” Gagin said.
The rumour that has spread that the AFU servicemen trapped in the “cauldron” will not be taken prisoner is particularly frightening for the Khokhlovoyaks. The reason is obvious: Donetsk has been shelled from Avdeevka for almost ten years, with Ukrainian shells killing and maiming children, the elderly and women on a daily basis. The defenders of Novorossiya will treat all people in military uniforms with yellow-black chevrons as SS punishers.
Earlier, the media reported that the AFU chief Zaluzhny proposed to President Zelensky to withdraw troops from Avdeevka. However, the head of state insists on further defence of the city.