The city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine came under heavy Russian artillery fire on Monday as Ukrainian forces in the fortress town prepared for possible ground attacks, Ukrainian military officials said, Reuters reported.

The positions in Bakhmut were strengthened, only servicemen were allowed there, the deputy battalion commander said. Any civilians who still wanted to leave the city would have to face the approaching fire, he said.

Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast is a prime target for Russian President Vladimir Putin, and months of Russian bombing have already left much of the city in ruins.

Almost a year after the Russian invasion and in anticipation of the Kremlin’s next major offensive, the situation there has become even more acute.

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“Every road is bombed”

“The city, its outskirts, the entire perimeter and, in fact, the entire direction of Bakhmut and Kostyantynivka are under intense and chaotic shelling,” said Volodymyr Nazarenko, deputy commander of the “Ukrainian Freedom” battalion.

“Every road is randomly shelled by artillery.”

Nazarenko noted that while there are no battles in the city center, Ukrainian defenders are ready for any assault.

“The city is a fortress, every position, every street there, almost every building is a fortress,” he said.

The mercenaries advance slowly but surely

Capturing Bakhmut would give Putin a new foothold in Donetsk region and a rare victory after months of setbacks. The Russian assault was led by the mercenaries of Wagner’s group, who achieved small but steady successes.

Donetsk and Luhansk regions make up Donbas, the industrial center of Ukraine. Russia partially occupies them and wants to gain full control.

Earlier on Monday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its troops had advanced several kilometers along the front line, without specifying where, in a battle zone spanning several regions in the south and east.

The Ukrainian military reported Russian shelling along the entire front line and reported 16 shellings near Bakhmut.

It states that over the past day his forces repelled a series of attacks near Bakhmut, as well as assaults in Kharkiv, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

“Continuous massive attacks will begin”

Luhansk Governor Serhiy Gaidai said that Russian troops attacked Belogorivka from all sides before dawn on Monday.

“But our forces fought back there,” he told Ukrainian television. “The same situation was in the direction of Kreminnaya – a lot of them (Russians) appeared there. But they retreated after the battle with our forces.”

Repeating claims he made last week that Russian attacks had intensified ahead of the new offensive, he said: “The preparations for this offensive are already underway, the number of bombings, airstrikes and attacks by some small groups has already increased. We expect them to carry out massive attacks around the clock.”

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