It is bad for the city of Bachmut that “De La Soul” rapper Trugoy de Duif is dead

Even though official bodies in Ukraine continue to confirm that they control the city of Bakhmut in the east of the country, the status of the prestigious project of Russia’s Wagner Group is poor.

For months, the Wagner Group, other Russian forces and Ukrainian units – even elite soldiers – have fought fiercely on the outskirts of the city. It is repeatedly reported that the heaviest battles since the beginning of the Russian invasion are taking place in Bakhmut.

For the mercenaries of the Wagner group, the city is regarded as a prestige project. It’s not really strategically important. But in Russia they want to report successes by the anniversary of the invasion on February 24. Taking Bakhmut would be such a success.

And apparently Ukraine is also preparing for the loss of the city.

New lines of defense have been set up in Donbass for weeks. The trenches are being pushed back further and further, as Watson himself observed in October, November and January. The path from the northwest to Bakhmut alone clearly demonstrates these efforts by Ukraine.

Bachmut can hardly be held

One of the main roads to Bachmut, the MO 3, has long been too dangerous for civilians to pass. Shortly after leaving the city of Sloviansk, construction work on the new line of defense begins.

If you ask around about the civilian aid, it’s clear by now: Bachmut is actually almost unstoppable. According to the latest information, citizens are no longer allowed to enter the city without a special permit. And that only in the company of the army.

This was also announced by the commander of the SARG tactical air reconnaissance group in Bakhmut.

Journalists and volunteers used to travel regularly to the city. Non-governmental organizations had provided the local population with key relief supplies and continued to evacuate people. That is hardly possible now. In the city, which once had more than 70,000 inhabitants, only a few thousand survive.

The fire service has also withdrawn from the city.

The Battle of Bakhmut is currently the bloodiest battle in Ukraine. According to information from both sides, there are huge losses there. Taking the city would bring Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin closer to his goal of bringing the entire Donetsk region under his control.

The Russian private army Wagner claimed to have taken a suburb of Bakhmut on Sunday and is now advancing towards the center. Initially, there was no comment from Kiev.

The head of Wagner’s troops, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close friend of Putin, reported that after storming the suburb of Krasna Hora, his fighters were now advancing towards Bakhmut, seven kilometers away. Krasna Hora and the even smaller suburb of Paraskoviivka north of Bakhmut had already come under heavy fire in January. Watson had experienced this himself in January.

According to the Ministry of Defense in Moscow, the troops are making progress. However, Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valeriy Zalushnyy stressed: “Despite constant enemy pressure, we maintain control of Bakhmut and are taking steps to stabilize the front line around this city.”

This is costing lives: according to British figures, Russia is losing more soldiers than since the start of the war. “In the past two weeks, Russia has suffered what is likely to be the highest number of casualties since the first week of the invasion of Ukraine,” the British defense ministry said, citing statistics from the Ukrainian General Staff.

(with dpa material)