- James Waterhouse
- BBC Ukraine correspondent on Bakhmut
image source, Reuters
In the city of Bakhmut, the current epicenter of the war in Ukraine, the bombardments did not stop despite the ceasefire declared by Vladimir Putin.
The path between Kostyantynivka and Bakhmut is like falling off the cliff of civilization.
The constant “boom” of tank fire indicates that you are approaching one of the most active areas of the front line in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine.
They also show that the 36-hour ceasefire declared by Russia for Orthodox Christmas it was only written on paper.
“They promised, but we neither see nor feel it“, says Oleksandr, a Ukrainian soldier.
Constant artillery explosions reinforce your vision. A projectile hits 50 meters from the place where we talked.
Jump. Oleksandr is unfazed. “What was that for?” he wonders.
It is a perfectly reasonable concern given that we are in a practically destroyed square.
“Everything is a ruin. Civilians die, soldiers, our people are dying“.
Oleksandr claims to have seen no real impact on the ground from the ceasefire announced by Russia.
Christmas in the basement
Russian forces are positioned on the eastern edge of the city, about 2 km. They have given their all trying to capture Bakhmut since the summer to push further west, but the city has not fallen.
Last Thursday, Vladimir Putin announced a truce that his troops would behold in the front line.
It started on Friday at noon and lasted until Saturday at midnight. According to Putin, the ceasefire was for Orthodox Christians to celebrate their Christmas.
Ukraine immediately rejected it. It doesn’t seem like it was a day to score for those left in Bakhmut.
While raking leaves into a bin, Sergiy, a civilian, proves me wrong.
“You wouldn’t wish this on your worst enemy, but We have celebrated Christmas as usual“, He says.
“We put up decorations and a Christmas tree, even though we celebrated it in the basement.”
Sergiy is one of the few civilians left in Bakhmut.
emptied city
One does not expect to meet someone who is not a soldier within the city. From an original population of 50,000, only about 2,000 remain here.
Military vehicles move urgently on the icy roads. We cannot stay in the same place for more than five minutes. That would make us a target.
It’s hard to imagine the shelling being more intense, but Sergiy says everything is relatively calm now.
“Do you see that there is no roof there?” he asks.
“It was loud. When they hit the bus station, it was loud. When they hit this utility pole, it was loud too. This is now quiet“.
Zone accustomed to war
Putin’s declaration of truce was significant. It was the first time such language had been used by either side since the start of the invasion.
Eastern Ukraine, however, has been at war since 2014, a focal point of Russian aggression since Moscow began supporting separatist militaries in the region.
Has been numerous ceasefire attempts over the years. Most have failed. On this occasion, few expected a respite in Bakhmut.
Additional reporting by Siobhan Leahy, Hanna Chornous, Paul Francis, and Artem Bilov.
Remember that you can receive notifications from BBC News World. Download our app and activate them so you don’t miss our best content.
:quality(85)//cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/73FQ7NKNOFDKTEFUBATRVCY7NA)
:quality(85)//cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/OWBNLDMFAVA7FMPGR2VDEGV6ZE.jpg)
