Hell surrounds me. Plumes of thick smoke curl into the sky. Buildings are shattered and smashed; the wreckage of destroyed vehicles litters the streets, which are deserted save for soldiers scurrying to and fro. Amid it all, the thunder of shelling is relentless.
Bakhmut is the bloodiest front of the war in Ukraine, which makes it the most dangerous place on Earth right now. The fight has been raging here since November: the longest battle of the war.
In the centre of the city, I am embedded with a Ukrainian Special Forces unit, just a few hundred metres from the Russian soldiers who are determined to kill anyone who stands in their way.
But many of these Russians are no ordinary soldiers. Here, at the centre of the Russian offensive, are mercenaries from the notorious private military company the Wagner Group.
These contracted killers are supplied by a Russian oligarch called Yevgeny Prigozhin, a shaven-headed thug who served nine years in prison for robbery and fraud before making a fortune in catering.
Wagner is probably the world’s most dangerous army — a hidden gem in the Kremlin’s bloody sceptre. Prigozhin is proud of employing the most savage fighters. They are known for torturing, burning and beheading their victims — expanding Russia’s influence by brute force.
Just down the road to my left, hundreds, possibly thousands, of these fighters lie in wait. One of my companions, a bear of a man, who goes by the call sign ‘Grizzly’, is unmoved.
Last line of the article is “ One of my companions, a bear of a man, who goes by the call sign ‘Grizzly’, is unmoved.“
What’s next?????
Emmanuelsblog my arse.
Fucking wast of time clicking on his comments
Instant DELETE as far as I’m concerned!