The situation remains “tense” this Saturday, October 14 in Avdiïvka, a town in eastern Ukraine, the target for several days of a large-scale offensive by Russian forces who are once again trying to “encircle” it. indicated its mayor Vitaly Barabach.
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The town of Avdiïvka, located 13 kilometers north of Donetsk, under Russian control, briefly fell in July 2014 into the hands of pro-Russian separatists supported and armed by Moscow, before returning to Ukrainian control. Since then, it has marked the front line in this area and was already regularly bombed even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The situation is “ very tense, for the fifth day already, the enemy has not stopped attacking or bombarding the positions around the city “, Vitaly Barabach said on Saturday on Ukrainian television. The objective of the Russians is to “ surround the city “, lamented the official, for whom the Moscow army ” deploys more and more troops » to bring down Avdiïvka.
Last night, however, was the first night » for the last few days when “ there were no rocket attacks in the city “, now largely destroyed, he added. But since, ” shooting continues, from the north and south of the city “, he described.
According to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, on the evening of October 13, Russia “ destroy ” completely ” a five-story building » by an air attack. “ A man born in 1959 is probably under the rubble, it is currently impossible to remove the body », added the ministry on Telegram, accompanying its message with photos of a ruined building. “ Police ask residents to evacuate “, he added.
Difficult evacuations of civilians
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky assured Thursday October 12 that his army “ held on » and resisted the Russian assault, while the Russian troops claimed to have “ improved » in recent days their positions in the sector.
According to the mayor, 1,622 civilians remain in Avdiïvka and evacuations there are difficult due to constant bombing. Before the Russian invasion, the city had 30,000 inhabitants.
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(With AFP)