The yelps of frightened stray dogs echo through the streets of Pokrovsk, responding to the roar of the artillery of the Russian army, which is inexorably approaching this mining town in eastern Ukraine.
The sound of the cannons does not, however, interrupt the discussions of several elderly people, who are among the approximately 10,000 inhabitants out of 60,000 who still remain in this Donbass town despite the imminent arrival of troops from Moscow.
Sweeping debris from the streets, sitting at an obsolete bus stop or in one of the few grocery stores still open, these residents display a certain impassivity in the face of the noise of the explosions.
” Nothing special “says Svitlana, the grocer, when a new salvo rings out.
This 51-year-old woman says she is used to these explosions. But she shows less phlegm when it comes to the speed of the advance of Russian troops, who are only two kilometers from the gates of the city, an important logistical node for the Ukrainian army and of which the coke industry is also key to the country.
“We thought we were protected. I thought there would be a real battle to defend Pokrovsk »confides the grocer to AFP, repeating exasperatedly that she does not“didn’t expect that. »
Last week, army commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky called the struggle “particularly fierce”.
An elderly woman awaits evacuation from Pokrovsk, Ukraine, December 14, 2024 / Roman PILIPEY / AFP
After a year of military setbacks, the arrival of fighting in Pokrovsk represents a new blow.
Already in July, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that his army lacked the manpower and means to contain the Russian offensive in the East.
“It’s the end”
Vladimir Putin congratulated himself on Monday for having « l’initiative » on the entire front, at the end of a year 2024 described as « charnière ».
In the center of Pokrovsk, collapsed bridges and gutted Soviet buildings bear witness to the scale of the bombings.
The banks have been closed since September, the train station is abandoned, the gas supply stopped at the beginning of December and the Pokrovsk mining facilities, vital for the steel industry, are starting to close.
A Ukrainian tank near Pokrovsk, Ukraine, December 13, 2024 / Roman PILIPEY / AFP
The local university, whose main building is in ruins, is planning a move west, to Lviv.
Olga Bogomaz, associate professor from Pokrovsk, visited this university for the last time in August, the day after the attack which devastated the site: “I understood that day that it was the end”.
“They didn’t just destroy the building. They destroyed its history and the hopes of teachers and students to be able to return there”she regrets.
Ms. Bogomaz, who witnessed the uprising of Moscow-backed Donbas separatists in 2014, feels ” pain “ et ” anger “ with each new destruction caused by the Russian army.
Some military experts consider Pokrovsk already lost, pointing to the responsibility of the generals, the delay in drone deliveries, or even systemic problems in the defense lines…
“Everyone has accepted the fact that the Russians are going to enter Pokrovsk”estimates a Ukrainian soldier followed by 200,000 people on social networks.
“Street Fights”
An analysis shared by Gypsie, a tank driver stationed on the outskirts of the city.
“There will soon be street battles in Pokrovsk”predicted the 34-year-old tank driver in a windswept forest.
His task within the 68th Brigade: to rain down shells, from his German Leopard tank, on the Russian infantry who attacked wave after wave in small groups.
Residents of Pokrovsk evacuated from their village by volunteers and Ukrainian police, December 14, 2024 / Roman PILIPEY / AFP
The tactic is costly in human lives for Russia, but effective against a Ukrainian army which lacks men and weapons to contain so many assaults.
Due to the Russian advance, Anna, a 21-year-old student, and her mother finally decided to leave.
They stuff six plastic bags containing the only belongings they were able to take into an armored van which bears the marks of two drone strikes.
Direction kyiv where the young woman has never set foot and knows no one.
A wide-eyed passerby then asks if she can run away too.
“Some only leave at the last moment. It's cold in the apartments. Everything is falling apart. It’s misery”notes Anna.
The young woman hopes one day to be able to find her home. But this will only be on one condition, that the city “still part of Ukraine”.
