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| ‘Our Losses Were Gigantic': Life in a Sacrificial Russian Assault Wave |
| 2023-02-14 |
| [NYT] Poorly trained Russian soldiers captured by Ukraine describe being used as cannon fodder by commanders throwing waves of bodies into an assault. Creeping forward along a tree line late at night toward an entrenched Ukrainian position, the Russian soldier watched in horror as his comrades were mowed down by enemy fire. His squad of 10 ex-convicts advanced only a few dozen yards before being decimated. "We were hit by machine-gun fire," said the soldier, a private named Sergei. One soldier was wounded and screamed, "Help me! Help me, please!" the private said, though no help arrived. Eight soldiers were killed, one escaped back to Russian lines and Sergei was captured by Ukrainians. The soldiers were sitting ducks, sent forth by Russian commanders to act essentially as human cannon fodder in an assault. And they have become an integral component of Russia’s military strategy as it presses a new offensive in Ukraine’s east: relying on overwhelming manpower, much of it comprising inexperienced, poorly trained conscripts, regardless of the high rate of casualties. There are two main uses of the conscripts in these assaults: as "storm troops" who move in waves, followed by more experienced Russian fighters; and as intentional targets, to draw fire and thus identify Ukrainian positions to hit with artillery. In interviews last week, half a dozen prisoners of war provided rare firsthand accounts of what it is like to be part of a sacrificial Russian assault. |
| Posted by:Thruter Gloluger6393 |
| #3 Mainly males. Don't see the 'feminists' leading from the front. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2023-02-14 18:47 |
| #2 /\ Agree! "War is Hell" and this appears to be Hell at it's very depths. The loss of human life is staggering. Neither side will recover in our lifetimes, possibly anyone's lifetime. A massive failure of "leaders" and diplomacy. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2023-02-14 12:20 |
| #1 This war is an environment where every man with a rifle has a machine gun, and where artillery does massive and indiscriminate damage. Not surprising Russians would suffer heavy casualties in that environment, as it is not surprising Ukrainian heavy losses are downplayed by western media as well. This is a knife fight and everyone is going to suffer. |
| Posted by: badanov 2023-02-14 11:44 |