Guillaume Dominguez, edited by Solène Leroux with AFP
Russia has launched its offensive in eastern Ukraine. In recent weeks, the Russian military campaign has refocused on the Donbass region. At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities called on the population to flee. Some still chose to stay, like Julian, a resident of Kramatorsk.
Hell in eastern Ukraine. The dreaded Russian offensive in the Donbass has begun, Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Monday evening. A battle prepared for a long time by the troops of Vladimir Putin, Moscow thus opens a new phase of its invasion after having failed to take the capital kyiv. In recent weeks, the Russian military campaign has refocused on the eastern region of Donbass, partially controlled by pro-Russian separatist forces since 2014. For several weeks now, the Ukrainian authorities have been calling on the population to flee. Some still chose to stay, like Julian.
The bombardments at 40 kilometers
“Here, the situation is very, very complicated,” he says at the microphone of Europe 1. He lives in Kramatorsk, on the Donbass border. “Many towns were bombed. For example, in Kramatorsk, the bombing zone today is 40 kilometers from the city,” he explains. “We hear the bombs falling every night because we are less than 175 km from the shots, in the most dangerous area,” laments the resident. “People want to flee to safer places, but it’s really very, very difficult.”
At least four civilians were killed Monday in Kreminna, Donbass, in Russian shelling as they tried to flee.