Balakliïa transformed into a battlefield
Balaklya, one of the key towns in the Kharkiv region, was recaptured from the Russians this week. The locality and its surroundings have been transformed into a battlefield and bear the traces of violent combat. To the north of the city, civilian cars, trucks and charred Russian armor – some still stamped with the letter Z, a symbol of the Russian forces that led the invasion of Ukraine – lie on the side of the road. by tens.
A few kilometers further, Ukrainian soldiers are preparing to move armored vehicles and a tank abandoned by the Russian army in recent days, in the midst of the Ukrainian offensive. At all crossroads, boxes of ammunition have been abandoned by the Russian army.
Access to Balakliïa, 27,000 inhabitants before the war, was made difficult by the destruction of two bridges by Russian forces before their withdrawal on Wednesday, according to residents interviewed by Agence France-Presse. According to Ukrainian media, only a third of the population remained in the city during the occupation, mostly people over 50 years old.
Around the main street, Ukrainian soldiers are patrolling and a few inhabitants are circulating, mostly on foot or on bicycles. Between the destroyed or damaged buildings, some homes have escaped the worst. The streets are almost deserted, but the Ukrainian flag has been hoisted and adorns the statue of Ukrainian national poet Taras Shevchenko in the city’s main square.