A Ukrainian police officer inspects a half-destroyed building when, suddenly, he rushes to the ground, ducking for cover. <\/p>\n
There\u2019s little to police these days in Avdiivka as most of the people who used to live in this frontline city are gone. But some 1,600 have remained, and this unit \u2014 the White Angels \u2014 are there to evacuate them to safety. <\/p>\n
The city had been left on the frontline when pro-Moscow separatists seized large portion of the Donbas region, including the nearby city of Donetsk, in 2014, and has been under fire since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. <\/p>\n
But on October 10, Moscow began a concentrated push, sending waves of soldiers and armoured vehicles while also intensifying shelling of the city.\u00a0The attack on Avdiivka comes as the front lines of the war remain relatively static, with Ukraine\u2019s counteroffensive continuing to move much more slowly than initially anticipated. <\/p>\n
Some analysts had initially suggested the Russian move was designed to force Kyiv to divert some of the forces it had been using for its attacks along the southern and eastern front lines, but Ukrainian officials say the goal is actually to make advances while Kyiv is focused elsewhere. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe situation is tense,\u201d Soloviy said, explaining people can no longer leave on their own, they have to wait to be evacuated. \u201cBecause of the increased shelling, people have started to sign up more often (for evacuation).\u201d <\/p>\n
Many of Avdiivka\u2019s residents had already fled before the full-scale invasion, leaving the city with a pre-war population of around 30,000. <\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the people remaining in the city are elderly, mostly men. They [stayed because] did not want to leave their homes,\u201d Soloviy explained. \u201cNow the situation is grim. Just so you understand, 10-15 bombs are dropped every day.\u201d <\/p>\n
Between airstrikes and artillery, supply lines into the city have also slowed down and so Solviy\u2019s unit has had to step in. <\/p>\n
\u201cAt the moment, we are the only ones bringing in the aid. We bring in humanitarian aid, bread, medicines,\u201d he said. \u201cWe go every day, there are no days off.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThere used to be three grocery stores operating in Avdiivka. Two of them were destroyed by missiles. Now only one sad little grocery store is open,\u201d he added. \u201cThere is nowhere to buy bread so once a week, we bring some so people can get bread.\u201d <\/p>\n
When people began leaving Avdiivka in 2014, the Ukrainian military moved in, fortifying the city and building up its defenses, turning it into a stronghold.\u00a0\u00a0Nine years and a full-scale invasion later and the frontline near Avdiivka has barely shifted. <\/p>\n
Video of the White Angels unit driving into the city shows a city covered in yellow and blue. Dozens of Ukrainian flags dot the route, but so do crumbling walls and shattered windows \u2013 entire buildings, some several stories high, razed to the ground. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe situation has not changed radically \u2013 it is tough,\u201d the head of the Avdiivka city military administration Vitalii Barabash said in daily update on Wednesday. \u201cThe defense line around the city and in the city itself is constantly under fire. (The Russians) are firing with everything they have.\u201d <\/p>\n
Airstrikes, missiles and artillery, constantly pointed at the city and its surroundings. Russia has been able to make small gains west of Krasnohorivka, to the north of Aviidvka, but those marginal advances have come with a heavy price tag and Moscow\u2019s still a long way off from its objective. <\/p>\n
\u201cRussian troops continue to try to encircle Avdiivka, making numerous attempts to storm it,\u201d the Ukrainian National Guard said in an update Wednesday. \u201cOur soldiers are steadfastly holding the line, inflicting significant losses in manpower and equipment on the enemy.\u201d <\/p>\n
On the ground, the fighting constant and fierce. <\/p>\n
\u201cSmall arms battles and artillery duels continue around the clock,\u201d Barabash explained. \u201cThe assault continues 24\/7.\u201d <\/p>\n
And after losing a large chunk of military equipment, including tanks and armoured personnel carriers, in the first few days of the offensive, Russia seems to have shifted to a tactic it knows well, the same it used on Ukrainian forces defending the city of Bakhmut. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe enemy is assaulting, throwing more and more flesh,\u201d Barabash explained. \u201cThe Russians decided to push on, they keep going despite the losses.\u201d <\/p>\n
But for those who go to Avdiivka day in and day out, that\u2019s where the comparisons end. <\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s the same as Bakhmut. Avdiivka is a battle-hardened town, it\u2019s been through a lot,\u201d Solviy said. \u201cPeople there are used to it.\u201d <\/p>\n
While Moscow\u2019s strategy has failed to play out as intended, it has still exacted a toll on Avdiivka. The city\u2019s sole hospital is still functional but unable to provide advanced care. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe hospital operates as a stabilization point. Here patients are stabilized and we further transfer them to other cities, where people are provided with more professional help,\u201d Solviy explained, adding there\u2019s not enough staff for the demand. \u201cThere is a chief physician Vitalii Sytnik and up to 10 nurses.\u201d <\/p>\n
Aside from the hospital, Avdiivka\u2019s civilian infrastructure is all but gone. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere is not a single building left intact,\u201d Barabash said on Wednesday, while Solviy shared a similar view. <\/p>\n
\u201cEverything is destroyed,\u201d the officer said. \u201cBack in the summer, there were hopes that we might come back. There had not yet been heavy destruction.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cNow it is an irreversible process. The city is a ruin,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
But while some people remain, Solviy will continue his daily trips to Avdiivka, hoping to ease the suffering and provide some comfort. <\/p>\n
\u201cI could have been a regular cop, shuffling papers in my office. I chose to be a White Angel,\u201d he said. \u201cIt can be scary. Sometimes the fear just takes over, but then it goes away and I keep going.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
A Ukrainian police officer inspects a half-destroyed building when, suddenly, he rushes to the ground, ducking for cover. There\u2019s little to police these days in Avdiivka as most of the people who used to live in this frontline city are gone. But some 1,600 have remained, and this unit \u2014 the White Angels \u2014 are <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":10713,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-10712","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10712\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}