Occupiers have abandoned positions haphazardly on the southern flank of Bakhmut, Russia is in trouble - British intelligence

The 72nd Independent Russian Motorized Rifle Brigade, which Ukrainian forces pushed back from positions in Bakhmut, is part of the 3rd Russian Army Corps, which was not established until the fall of 2022. The deployment of a non-professional unit in such a complex and important sector underscores the occupier's acute shortage of professional personnel.

This was stated in a British intelligence summary published on May 13 on Twitter by the British Ministry of Defense. It is noted that the Ukrainian Defense Forces were able to recapture at least a kilometer of territory in the Bakhmut direction.

"Over the past four days, units of the 72nd Independent Motorized Rifle Brigade (72 OMBr) of Russia have probably withdrawn indiscriminately from their positions on the southern flank of the Bakhmut operation," the report noted.

"This area has a certain tactical importance, since there was the Russian bridgehead on the western side of the Donets-Donbass Canal, which marks the front line through part of the sector," the summary explained.

The scouts noted that the 72nd OMSBr had previously been accused of low morale and limited combat effectiveness, so its redeployment to positions in Bakhmut indicates significant problems with personnel in the Russian army.

As a reminder, the day before, Prigozhin accused Russian regular troops of fleeing their positions. He stated that the "Wagnerians" had long conquered and held these territories, and when they handed them over to the troops of the Russian Defense Ministry, they fled.

At the same time, a Ukrainian military member of the 3rd OSB and commander of the 1st Assault Battalion, call sign Rollo, told CNN in an interview that Prigozhin lied because the "Wagnerians" were the first to flee from there. Russia's regular army troops tried to fight back during the Defense Forces' offensive.

As OBOZREVATEL reported:

- as of the morning of May 13, the ISW reported that the Ukrainian Defense Forces had succeeded in local counterattacks northwest of Bakhmut in Donetschina. Video captured the occupants fleeing as they attempted to escape Ukrainian artillery fire;

- Sergei Cherevatiy, spokesman for the Eastern Group of Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, reported that Ukrainian defenders eliminated 199 occupants in Bakhmut during the day. Another 244 were wounded and 15 were taken prisoner.

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