Ukrainian strike 'sends more than 100 Russian soldiers to Hell': Putin is accused of 'driving his own people to slaughter' in Battle of Soledar as before-and-after satellite images reveal devastating destruction

• More than 100 Russian soldiers were killed in coordinated Ukrainian strike including special forces, gunners and rocket launchers in Soledar
• In Soledar, a town in eastern Ukraine, the ground is scarred from fierce battles
• Russian forces are aiming to take control of the nearby city of Bakhmut 

By RACHAEL BUNYAN FOR MAILONLINE

PUBLISHED: 03:10 EST, 12 January 2023 | UPDATED: 06:04 EST, 12 January 2023

Ukrainian army Grad multiple rocket launcher fires rockets at Russian positions in the frontline near Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Wednesday

Soledar, in the industrial Donbas region, lies just nine miles from Bakhmut, where troops from both sides have been taking heavy losses in some of the most intense trench warfare since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year

A coordinated Ukrainian strike killed more than 100 Russian soldiers who had grouped together during the Battle of Soledar in yet another devastating setback in Vladimir Putin's barbaric invasion of Ukraine, it has been claimed. 

Putin was today accused of 'driving his own people to slaughter by the thousands' in his drive to secure the significant town of Soledar in eastern Ukraine, after Ukrainian troops launched a Soviet-era missile at a large group of Russian soldiers.

Ukraine's military said more than 100 Russian soldiers 'went together to Hell' in the coordinated attack in Soledar, which involved special forces, gunners and rocket launchers.

Heavy fighting has broken out in Soledar, once a bustling salt-mining town in eastern Ukraine, as Russian forces try to take control of the nearby and key city of Bakhmut.

Haunting before-and-after satellite images show how all of the town's buildings have been destroyed, with barely any walls left standing, by a relentless stream of missiles and gunfire.

A Ukrainian missile strike killed more than 100 Russian soldiers who had grouped together during the Battle of Soledar, it has been claimed. Pictured: Footage reportedly shows a group of Russian soldiers being hit by Ukrainian artillery in the fields surrounding the town of Soledar

Footage released by Ukraine's special forces reportedly shows a group of Russian soldiers being hit by Ukrainian artillery in the fields surrounding the town. 

The Russian soldiers were spotted in large groups in several areas across Soledar by the Ukrainian special forces, who then relayed those coordinates to the high command.

Ukrainian troops opened fire at the Russian soldiers, while the Tochka-U tactical missile was also launched in a series of deadly strikes.

More than 100 Russian soldiers were killed in the coordinated attack, while two machine gun positions and two mortars were also destroyed, the Ukrainian special forces said.

Soledar, in the industrial Donbas region, lies just nine miles from Bakhmut, where troops from both sides have been taking heavy losses in some of the most intense trench warfare since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year.

'The Russians are moving over their own corpses,' Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister, Hanna Malyar, said today of the dire situation in Soledar. 'Russia is driving its own people to the slaughter by the thousands, but we are holding on.'

Russia is trying to take control of Bakhmut as it has a network of cavernous mining tunnels below the ground which can hold troops or tanks.

Russian troops have stepped up their assault of Soledar, forcing Ukrainian troops to bear wave after wave of attacks led by the Wagner mercenaries. 

Ukrainian soldiers on their positions in the frontline near Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on  Wednesday

Ukrainian army, of the 43rd Heavy Artillery Brigade fire a German howitzer Panzerhaubitze 2000, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, near Soledar, on Wednesday

'As many as 10,000 Russian troops have been killed in Battle of Soledar'

As many as 10,000 Russian troops, mainly from private army Wagner, have died in Vladimir Putin’s recent bid to grab a rare victory by seizing Soledar, it was claimed today.

His overall months-long attempt to seize the Soledar-Bakhmut sector has allegedly cost more than 20,000 lives.

This came as Kyiv insisted Russia has not succeeded so far in grabbing the Soledar, famous for its salt mines.

And Hanna Malyar, Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister, said: "They [the Russians] are moving over their own corpses."Russia is driving its own people to the slaughter by the thousands, but we are holding on.”

Telegram channel General SVR today claimed that Putin had told aides he did not care how many ‘criminals and bastards will die’ during the hostilities to take Soledar, nor how many will remain crippled. He was apparently referring to Wagner group mercenaries.

The channel alleged Putin had been told of the immense human cost with 60 per cent of the deaths among the private military companies (PMCs) used by Russia, rather than regular forces.

“The President was informed that the capture of Soledar alone costs colossal casualties both among the military personnel of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and PMC fighters,” reported the channel.

“The total number of deaths from the Russian side during the capture of Soledar, according to the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, is more than 10,000 people, and since the start of the offensive in the Soledar-Bakhmut sector, more than 20,000 people.

“More than 60% of the dead and wounded are PMC fighters.”

Putin evidently believes the seizure of small town Soledar is a “big victory” which is the “main achievement”.

-----------

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said last night fighting is still raging in the Soledar - dismissing claims that Putin's Wagner group controlled the town. 

Donetsk governor Pavlo Kyrylenko told Ukrainian state TV that 559 civilians remain in Soledar, including 15 children, and it was impossible to evacuate them due to ongoing fighting. The town had a pre-war population of around 10,500. 

The fate of Soledar remains uncertain after the Wagner group claimed it controlled the gateway town - but the Kremlin cautioned against declaring victory prematurely.

In his daily address Wednesday, Zelensky insisted the front was 'holding'.

'The terrorist state and its propagandists are trying to pretend' to have achieved some successes in Soledar, Zelensky said, 'but the fighting continues'.

Russia's attack on Soledar has come at a high price for Putin's men, with more than 100 soldiers killed in the latest Ukrainian assault.

The Ukrainian special forces said: 'More than 100 Russian soldiers went together to Hell in the Soledar area. This happened thanks to the coordinated work of SSO soldiers, gunners, and rocket launchers.

'The concentration of the enemy in several areas was discovered by the operators of the Special Operations Forces. Artillery was directed at the enemy, and the Tochka-U tactical missile complex was also used in one of the areas.

'As a result of these several strikes, the destruction of more than 100 occupiers, 2 machine gun positions and 2 mortars were confirmed.

'In the video - one of the stages of working out the artillery according to the given coordinates.'

Both Moscow and Kyiv have said the battle in Soledar has been long and brutal. If Soledar did fall to Moscow's forces, it would be Russia's first significant territorial gain in Ukraine for months. 

The head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed Wednesday that his forces had 'taken control of the whole territory of Soledar' and 'urban battles' were fought in the city centre.

But in a sign of differing accounts of the situation on the ground, Russia's defence ministry urged caution, saying it was best to wait for 'official announcements'.

Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov said the situation in Soledar was 'approaching that of critical'.

'The Ukrainian armed forces are holding their positions. About one half of the town is under our control. Fierce fighting is going on near the town centre,' he said on YouTube.

A Ukrainian soldier points at raising smoke on his position in the frontline near Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Wednesday

Smoke billows during fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Wednesday 

Ukrainian serviceman Hryhorii, 42, of the 43rd Heavy Artillery Brigade emerges from a German howitzer Panzerhaubitze 2000, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, near Soledar, on Wednesday

However, Zhdanov told Ukrainian television that if Russian forces seized Soledar or nearby Bakhmut it would be more a political victory than military.

'There is more politics than war here,' said Zhdanov.

'The Russians, if they take one of these towns, will try to put the event on par with capturing Berlin and they will use it for propaganda purposes as much for the outside market as for domestic consumption,' he said.

'Inside Russia, it will give them the opportunity to lift the spirits of conscripts and society as a whole. To unite them all...'

Ukraine's military command said Thursday that Russia was recruiting former soldiers and law enforcement officers to join paramilitary units in Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11626683/Ukrainian-missile-strike-kills-100-Russian-soldiers-grouped-together.html