The head of Russia’s Wagner paramilitary group, Yevgeny Prigojine, claimed on Saturday that his men had captured the village of Laguidné on the northern outskirts of Bakhmout, a town Moscow troops have been attempting to seize since the summer.
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The conquest of Yagidné further entrenched the Russian stranglehold on Bakhmout, the village lies less than two kilometers from the center of this fortified town of disputed strategic importance, but which has become a symbol of the struggle for control of the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine .
“At 7 p.m. on February 25, Wagner’s assault units took full control of the village of Yaguidné north of Bakhmout,” Prigojine said, quoted by his press service on Telegram.
A photo on the Telegram account shows armed and masked men with a Wagner flag in front of the entrance sign to the village of Iaguidné.
According to Wagner’s press service, quoted by TASS agency, Ukrainian troops blew up a dam near Bakhmout to slow down the advance of Russian forces.
“Indeed, Ukrainian forces blew up the dam,” the press service said, adding that it was a dam on Lake Pivnivchny, located west of Bakhmout.
These claims were immediately unverifiable by an independent source.
Russian forces have been trying to encircle Bakhmout for several weeks and have cut off several important supply routes for Ukrainian troops.
On Friday, the Wagner group, which is on the front lines in this battle, had claimed the capture of Berkhivka north of Bakhmout and last week that of Paraskoviïvka.
Tensions have risen sharply in recent weeks between the paramilitary group and the Russian army, with Mr Prigozhin accusing the latter of not providing him with the ammunition he needs.