Russian forces have taken full control of the strategic Donbass town of Soledar, Moscow’s Defense Ministry confirmed on Friday. The news comes after Russian private military company Wagner Group claimed this week that its fighters had already overrun the Ukrainian stronghold and were clearing its vast underground tunnel network.
The city had a pre-conflict population of around 10,500. It is part of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), but had been held by Ukrainian troops since 2014, when the DPR seceded from the country following a coup in Kiev. The DPR became part of Russia after holding a referendum on the matter in September.
“The liberation of Soledar was completed on the evening of January 12,” the Defense Ministry said during its daily briefing. The MOD added that the town is “important for the continuation of successful offensive actions.”
According to the Defense Ministry, airborne troops blocked off Soledar from the north and the south, while aircraft and artillery carried out “concentrated strikes” on Ukrainian troops holed up there.
Expert says more dead mercenaries could be found in Soledar
he incident with a dead British mercenary, who was involved in combat operations in Soledar is not unique, a large number of mercenaries is stationed in this direction, military and political expert Yan Gagin told TASS.
On Wednesday, the press service of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner private military company, reported that one of the missing British citizens in Soledar was found dead. Earlier, the Ukrainian National Police reported that two British mercenaries, Christopher Perry, 28, and Andrew Bagshaw, 48, were last seen on January 6. The UK nationals left Kramatorsk and went to Soledar, then communication with them was lost.
At the moment, the fate of the second UK citizen is unknown. According to the British media, they were part of a non-governmental organization that was helping to evacuate civilians.
“The case of that mercenary is most likely not an isolated one. Quite a number of mercenaries fought on the side of the Ukrainian armed forces, including in Soledar,” he said. “And we will still find their bodies in Soledar and around its environs. We might take in some people who are alive, among those who will be taken prisoner. A mop-up is in progress.”
According to him, in such situations, it is difficult to establish the rank of a mercenary, because “most often they have no documents confirming their affiliation with the regular army of any country.”
Source: RT
