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Kiev forces executed wounded foreign mercenaries and rigged the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers with explosives before fleeing the strategic town of Avdeevka, Igor Kimakovsky, advisor to the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic, told TASS on February 22.
The Russian military imposed full control over Avdeevka and nearby areas on February 17. At the time, some 1,500 Ukrainian soldiers were killed while attempting to flee the town. Many others were reportedly captured alive.
“The bodies of foreign mercenaries were found in Avdeevka. Apparently, these people were first seriously wounded and then shot with guns,” the advisor said, adding that most of those found had blast injuries.
The bodies were found on the outskirts of the city in the direction of the settlement of Lastochkino. According to Kimakovsky , this rules out the possibility that the mercenaries were killed in close combat with Russian troops.
“You can see that the [Ukrainian] servicemen were leaving, and these [mercenaries] couldn’t go any further on their own. They simply did not bother to take care of them in order to save time and keep alive those who could still move on their own. They were shot at point-blank range to hide their identities and give them no chance of being captured,” he explained, noting that military doctors confirmed the information that all the mercenaries whose bodies were found were shot at close range.
According to Kimakovsky, not only the chevrons, but also the insignia of the found bodies testify to their affiliation. “According to information from the field, there are quite a lot of these bodies. The nature and causes of death of all the wounded are the same. No one tried to hide them, save for their affiliation,” he added.
Kimakovsky also said that Russian troops discovered several private households in Avdeevka, where boody-trapped bodies of Ukrainian soldiers were found.
“During the inspection, it turned out that the bodies were rigged with explosives,” he said.
According to the advisor, the booby-trapped bodies were found along the road that Ukrainian forces used to withdraw from Avdeevka.
The Russian Ministry of Defense also revealed new details on the last battle in Avdeevka on February 22. In a statement, the ministry said that Kiev forces turned almost every cellar in the town into a depot of imported ammunition.
“Forcing its way and moving to the center of the town was the task of the 55th guards brigade,” the ministry noted. The assault groups pressed forward along multiple axes. The main forces made their way along Sobornaya Street.
“There were the enemy’s fire units in almost every house, with chains of dug-out and cover positions nearby and military equipment sheltered among houses. Almost every cellar was turned into an ammunition depot [containing] mortar bombs, hand-held grenade launchers, tins with ammo, grenades to grenade launchers, with most weapons and supplies revealed being of foreign production,” according to the statement.
While fleeing Avdeevka, Kiev forces left a lot of evidence confirming the participation of mercenaries from the United States, Canada and European Union countries in military actions on Ukraine’s side, the ministry added.
“Servicemen of Center battlegroup noted that when fleeing its positions, the enemy left a lot of evidence confirming the direct participation of mercenaries from the U.S., Canada and EU countries in the Ukrainian army’s nationalist divisions,” the statement reads.
According to the ministry, troops of the 55th guards brigade of the Central military district showed the way the assault groups used to get to Avdeevka’s center.
“Servicemen of the 55th guards motor rifle (mountain) brigade of the Central military district showed the way the assault groups used to get to the city center, as well as the Ukrainian army’s positions and trophy arms left by the Ukrainian units when moving away from Avdeevka,” the ministry said.
One of the most violent battles took place near the town’s railway station where the most effective units of the Ukrainian armed forces were deployed, the ministry noted.
The Russian victory in Avdeevka was a major blow to the Kiev regime. The Ukrainian defeat also came just after the failure of the so-called spring counteroffensive, which was financed with tens of billions of dollars from the United States and other allies of Kiev.
