Intense fighting continued for the centre of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, the site of the longest and bloodiest battle since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ednews reports citing foreign media.
"Assault detachments [of the Russian paramilitary group] Wagner are attacking from several locations, trying to break through the defence of our troops and advance to the central districts,” Oleksandr Syrsky, a Ukrainian ground forces commander in Bakhmut, said on Monday.
"The closer we are to the city centre, the harder the fighting is, and the more artillery there is," echoed Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner paramilitary group.
On Sunday, he also described the situation in the city as “difficult, very difficult, with the enemy fighting for each metre.”
The city, which had a pre-war population of around 70,000 people, has been the epicentre of fighting on the eastern front for months, even though its strategic importance is disputed by experts.