New footage that has surfaced on social media shows front-line fighting in Donetsk region, the only place currently under attack by Russian forces, reminiscent of World War I scenes.

The fighting here is characterized by shelling from both sides and the exchange of fire from the static positions of the trenches built by the two armies. One of the recordings shows a Ukrainian soldier firing an American-made M240B machine gun at one of the Russian positions.

Another video shows the positions of Ukrainian defenders near Bakhmut.

The footage evokes the First World War, not only because of the static nature of the fighting, but also because of the utter devastation of the landscape they capture, with land leveled to the ground and trees blown to the ground by repeated bombings.

Other footage previously shared on social media also captured desolate landscapes marked by craters and scorched earth. Some of this footage was shot right in the area of ​​Bakhmut, a Donetsk mining town that is strategically important to the front line.

Activation of battles in Bakhmut

The attack in the direction of Bakhmut currently remains the only offensive action of the Russian army after the “sharp reduction” of military activity in the Kyiv and Chernihiv area, the “regrouping of forces” in Kharkiv and the withdrawal for the purpose of the offensive. in Kherson, announced by official Russian

In an extensive report published a few days ago, journalists from The Moscow Times noted that the battle for the city of Bakhmut has intensified in recent weeks, as Russian forces led by Wagner’s mercenaries are desperately trying to capture the city so that the Kremlin can report to the Russian public a new victory on the front.

“The ongoing attacks around Bakhmut reflect the desire of both the Russian military and the Kremlin to get good news from the front after months of morale-damaging withdrawal,” said James Black, a military analyst at the Rand Corporation, one of the world’s largest. analytical centers specializing in defense and security issues.

Fierce fighting left the city of Bakhmut without water, gas and electricity, and thousands of citizens decided to stay in the city, although about 90% of the population fled.

“It’s a meat grinder,” says Jakub Yanovsky of the Bakhmut Front, one of the military analysts who writes articles for Oryx, a well-known website that monitors military equipment and casualties on both sides of the war in Ukraine.

In recent days, videos have appeared on social networks showing how Ukrainian artillery and aircraft attack Russian forces in Bakhmut, and some areas in the northeast of the city even resorted to “scorched earth” tactics.

Among the losses recorded by the Moscow troops are both criminals recruited by the Wagner PMC mercenaries from Russian prisons and conscripts enrolled after the decree on partial mobilization on September 21.

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