A number of Ukrainian soldiers were captured during the operation to escape from Avdiivka, besieged by Russian occupiers.

This was announced by the commander of the operational-strategic group of troops “Tavria”, Brigadier General Alexander Tarnavsky.

Photo by Konstantin and Vladislava Liberov

“The withdrawal of personnel from Avdiivka took place in accordance with a plan that was developed taking into account different scenarios and possible changes in the operational situation. And yet, at the final stage of the operation, under pressure from superior enemy forces, a number of Ukrainian military personnel were captured,” he noted. 

According to the general, the relevant Ukrainian structures will turn to international humanitarian organizations and intermediary countries in order to achieve a humane attitude of the enemy towards prisoners of war and the return of soldiers to their homeland.

“We will fight for the liberation of all our brothers-in-arms,” the military leader assured.

Let us remind you that the abandonment of Avdiivka by Ukrainian forces became known today – Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky announced this, and President Vladimir Zelensky later commented.

They said that retreating to pre-arranged positions was the only option to save the lives of Ukrainian defenders.  

Over the past 24 hours, in the zone of responsibility of the OSGV Tavria, the Defense Forces destroyed 609 Russian military personnel. In total, in 24 hours, 1,050 invaders, 11 tanks and 28 artillery systems were eliminated on the fronts of the Russian-Ukrainian war.  

Austrian military analyst Tom Cooper describes recent events in and around Avdiivka as follows:

“When the Russians realized that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had begun to retreat from the ruins of the city, they rushed into such a massive offensive that its result can only be described as a real disaster. For both sides.

It seems that the Ukrainian command was planning a so-called “phased exit.” That is, the units that held the eastern side of the positions came first, followed by the southern ones. Next, the units that held the city had to retreat to the 9th district, and from there retreat to the west, etc.

By launching that massive attack, the Russians (and they threw literally everything they had into battle from many directions, carried out more than 50 airstrikes) destroyed not only the plans of the Ukrainians, but also their own.

As a result, it came to the point that the military calls melee – “close combat”, or “hand-to-hand combat” (from the French mêlée). This is a disorganized fight in “abnormal” proximity, which is almost impossible to control.”

The result was horrific losses of the Russian occupation forces, notes Cooper: more than 1,300 killed and 1,000 wounded. At the same time, Russian evacuation of the wounded (CASEVAC) works so poorly that a large number of them are left to die on the battlefield. In addition, the enemy’s military hospitals are hopelessly overcrowded;

The Russian 74th and 114th motorized rifle brigades were destroyed during the offensive (their total losses are estimated at 4,000 people).

The armed forces suffered losses amounting to dozens of people, and, worst of all, left dozens of wounded in Avdiivka.

UPDATED at 5:06 p.m. According to Slidstvo Info, six wounded defenders remained in the Zenit fortified area in Avdeevka, who were denied evacuation. According to the sister of one of them, call sign “Django,” during a video conversation the man said that his legs were broken and there were debris in his back. The footage shows another fighter with a stomach wound.

There were six defenders in total in the former mine, which served as a hospital. Five of them were wounded, and one remained with his brothers to help them. They waited for evacuation for a day and a half, but then it became known that it would not happen – the command agreed that the Russians would take them and raise the white flag.

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