PMC Wagner suffers huge losses in war, number of graves in cemetery increased 7 times in 2 months — NYT
Фото: The New York Times,
In the village of Bakinskaya, Krasnodar region, the cemetery, which PMC "Wagner" uses to bury its murdered mercenaries, has increased 7 times in recent months.
The New York Times writes about it. The mass media analyzed satellite images and video recordings.
"The cemetery, which has expanded, is a rare visual testimony that shows the damage that the invasion of Ukraine is doing to Wagner, especially to its rank-and-file soldiers.
A satellite image taken on January 24 shows about 170 burials in the area of the cemetery where "Wagner" fighters are buried.
And this number has increased almost 7 times compared to what was visible on satellite images only two months ago," the media outlet noted.
The media reports that the increase in the territory of the cemetery coincides with the bloody offensive of russian soldiers and mercenaries to gain a foothold in eastern Ukraine.
The US government claims that Wagner's battlefield casualties "number in the thousands and that 90% of them are prisoners who were recruited to fight in exchange for release from prison."
Photo: The New York Times
Reference
The existence of graves located near the main Wagner training center in the village of Molkino first became known in December 2022. Activist and former russian Air Force officer Vitaly Wotanovsky announced this.
The existence of this cemetery was also confirmed by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the "Wagner" PMC founder.
In a video from one of the colonies that appeared in September, Prigozhin recruited prisoners. He stated that the bodies of the dead are buried in the "alleys of heroes" in various cities, as well as "near the Wagner PMC chapel."
The NYT notes that Wotanowsky's photos also provide insight into who has fought and died for Wagner in recent months.
At least 16 names and birth dates seen on gravestones have been found in online databases of people convicted of crimes in russia.
They note that many probably died in the battles for the Ukrainian cities of Bakhmut and Soledar. There, mercenaries and the russian military have suffered heavy losses over the past four months.
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It is also reported that these are not all burials. Many dead occupiers are cremated. The NYT recalled a video in which Prigozhin visited the "Wagner" chapel. It is located approximately 8 miles (12.87 km) from the cemetery.
The footage showed rows of black walls with compartments typical of the burial of cremated remains. Each compartment has an identification number and displays the combat awards of the deceased.
It is noted that "The Times" counted 21 walls near the chapel, each of which contains 42 compartments.
This suggests that hundreds of fallen Wagner soldiers are either buried or at least memorialized near the chapel.
The NYT points out that it is unclear whether all of these fighters were killed in Ukraine or elsewhere, but the footage provides a rare insight into the extent of the Wagner PMC's losses.
