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Ukraine war: Bittersweet victory in Lyman as battle has come at a significant cost to civilians | World News


Success on the battlefield translates into a very different language for the inhabitants of Lyman – and has come at a considerable cost to civilians.

A town east of Donetsk is only a shell of its former husk, crushed to pieces with its heart ripped out of it, and a handful of residents still there living underground “like mole,” one told us.

“We don’t care who is in control here,” one woman told us. “It could be the devil. We just want them to stop firing.”

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We saw the bodies of Russian soldiers strewn across the road into Lyman, their burned and battered cars beside them.

Their bodies are bulging and their faces are waxy yellow, with individual pockets spilling around.

“Be careful,” a colleague of mine warned our group, “there are landmines everywhere.”

Sure enough, hidden among the soldiers’ belongings and half covered with leaves and earth were some landmines along the way.

The Russians wanted to kill when they retreated in the face of the Ukrainian army.

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Road to Lyman

The recapture of Lyman was an important victory because it was already used by the Russians as an important transportation hub – the railway lines were used to supply and munition their units in Donetsk and Luhansk, two regions. make Donbass.

The severing of this important supply link has the potential to affect not only the Russians’ ability to maintain defenses on the eastern front, but potentially their plans to move forward. At least, that seems to be Ukraine’s intention.

The recapture certainly placed them in a good military position on the eastern front and the soldiers were clearly elated by these successes.

“In Mariupol, the battle is the greatest,” Roman tells us in broken but clear English.

But here, in Lyman? I ask.

“Here’s the Russian,” he replied with a smile.

“Here they shoot a little and then go away.” There was another speaking smile from him.

Roman says that the Russians did not resist much in Lyman
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Roman says the Russians don’t resist much
Image of Chris Cunningham from Lyman.Inside Lyman - Destroyed Store

This is not Mariupol.

Lyman didn’t have much of a Ukrainian army while we were in town, a few days after it was captured by the Ukrainians.

This seems to show that they have defended it and have moved forward to try to retake many of the villages and towns inside the Donbas.

Lyman is only about 10 miles from the border of neighboring Luhansk, and some of the soldiers we spoke to confidently predicted the recapture of substantial territory there.

But for those left behind from these military maneuvers, the battle for survival has become no less harsh.

Part of the rocket in the children's playground
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Part of the rocket in the children’s playground

We spotted men trying to cut down trees on the hospital premises. They are collecting firewood for burning. The town has been without electricity for months and winter is fast approaching.

Hospital buildings were under construction in several places. We could see stretchers and medical supplies including infant cots through the broken window.

It was difficult to find a solution, as the Russians held Lyman for months, who attacked the medical facility.

Was it done during the initial capture of the town or during shelling to try to dislodge the Russians?

That will certainly be part of the investigation into what happened here, as attacking a hospital is a violation of international law and a potential war crime.

There were worried looks from men chopping wood as an army fuel truck rumbled. They could see the Russian ‘Z’ symbol – but it was painted over with a less distinct Ukrainian cross.

Natalia
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Natalia lives and eats in a basement and says that’s not life
Natalia is cooking in the basement

“War on land,” one of the men muttered to us, “but we have nothing to heat our house…no electricity…nothing.”

The men – like many here – don’t want to be filmed.

“You ask us about referendums,” commented one woman. “We don’t want to talk politics. We want to stop living in shelters. Even dogs have a better life than we do right now.”

Natalia took us downstairs into a cold, dark concrete shelter, where they piled wood for cooking underground and tried to keep warm in the winter.

They don’t seem to believe that life is likely to change much for them in the immediate future.

The town may have been recaptured but there was a deep reluctance to accept any chance and a great sense of doubt as to whether the fighting really ended here.

“No job, no pension, nothing…no pay,” Natalia told us.

“We have nothing… our children have no wages and no jobs… can you call this life?” Her voice broke and she sobbed. “I can’t do this anymore,” she said.

Image of Chris Cunningham from Lyman.Inside Lyman - Police station with newly painted Ukrainian flag
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The police station has been repainted with the colors of the Ukrainian flag

Lyman police station still has signage in Russian, but there is a paint pot and paintbrush near the gate that shows it has been newly remodeled with the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag.

A policeman showed us an image of the Russian flag on the same gate just a few days earlier. Flags and loyalty are both important here.

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Alex Crawford reports from within Lyman

Another cop from Lyman came to see the group of civilians we were traveling with – to let them know he was back in town and would be working to try to reconnect unnecessary utilities.

“We just need electricity,” several residents told him, talking to each other when it was rare to see a person in authority.

“It’s only our second day here,” the policeman, Dmytro, told them. “We can’t fix everything at once.”

But he reassured them: “We know you need. We’re trying.”

Zina, 75, stopped her bike to talk to us. Like so many people here, she suffered a lot but with nowhere to go, there were few options for her.

“Who wants this war?” she speaks. “Nobody wanted it… everyone left, everyone ran away… the city was empty.”

& # 39;  Everyone left, everyone fled… the city was empty, & # 39;  Zina said
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Zina said: ‘Everybody left, everyone ran away…the city was empty.
& # 39;  This is only our second day here, & # 39;  the police officer, Dmytro, told them.  & # 39;  We cannot fix everything at once.  & # 39;
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The police try to reassure everyone that they will get everything back up and running

And it’s not just Lyman. The surrounding villages and communities around the city have been battered almost imperceptibly.

The roads around the Kharkiv area – where the Ukrainians carried out a blitzkrieg by Russian troops, allowing them to retake Izyum and move up to Lyman – were full of rusty military vehicles.

The surrounding communities are also mostly empty and much of it is rubble. The bittersweet victory in Ukraine.

Alex Crawford reports to cinematographer Jake Britton and producers Chris Cunningham and Artem Lysak.

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