Published on 03/11/2022 11:15
FRANCEINFO
Article written by
M Burgot, E Delevoye, H Horoks, D Padalka, V Hryshko – franceinfo
France TV
In Bakhmout, eastern Ukraine, Wagner’s mercenaries, a Russian militia that recruits prisoners for combat, constantly attack. These paramilitaries are used as cannon fodder against Ukrainian troops.
In Bakhmout, Ukraine, the banging of cannons is incessant. Ukrainian forces must contend with Wagner’s Mercenaries, a Russian militia that uses prisoners to fight. The paramilitaries are constantly attacking. The man leading the offensive from the Russian side, the head of the Wagner militia, is Yevgueni Prigozhin. He recruits prisoners who are paid to fight at Bakhmout. “They use them like cannon fodder. They don’t stay alive for long, two months at most,” confirms a Ukrainian soldier.
Another Ukrainian soldier said he saw Wagner’s ex-prisoners advancing on the front lines. “They have orders to advance. And if they don’t, they will be executed,” he said. Most civilians don’t know that the Wagner militia are responsible for their hell hole. About 17,000 people have fled to the basement. “We don’t know anything. We don’t have internet, we’re always there,” says a woman. The city of Bakhmout has lost all strategic interest in Moscow. “However, Wagner’s mercenaries are relentless, driven by their leader in a quest for notoriety, and of course, as always, the civilians are in the thick of these fights,” concludes Maryse Burgot, special envoy to Ukraine.