On the 404th day of war since the invasion of Ukraine, the Russian paramilitary group Wagner claimed responsibility for the capture of Bakhmout town hall on Monday morning. The group deduces that they now control the city in the east of the country. “In the legal sense, Bakhmout was captured. The enemy is concentrated in the western areas“, Wagner chief Yevgeni Prigojine said on Telegram. Chasiv Yar might be the next Russian target if Bakhmout were to fall.
A video accompanying his message shows Yevgeny Prigojine waving a Russian flag with an inscription in honor of Vladlen Tatarsky, the Russian military blogger fervent defender of the offensive in Ukraine killed Sunday by the explosion of a bomb. This attack in a cafe in the historic center of Saint Petersburg also injured 25 people, according to the Russian authorities.
Ukraine ensures for its part that it still holds the symbolic city of Bakhmout where fierce fighting has been raging for months. “The enemy did not stop their assault on Bakhmout. However, the Ukrainian defenders bravely hold the city repelling numerous enemy attacks“, indicated the Ukrainian general staff on its Facebook page a few hours before Wagner claimed to control the town hall of the city.
