This Saturday, July 30, in a video, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on the inhabitants of Donetsk, one of the two administrative regions of Donbass, to evacuate the area in order to escape "Russian terror" and bombardments.
"Please evacuate," he said, saying "at this point terror is Russia's main weapon."
Every day, Russian strikes mourn this territory.
During the night from Saturday to Sunday, the Ukrainian army announced that it had come under Russian fire in Bakhmout and Kramatorsk, two towns on the front.
The day before, the bombing of a prison where Ukrainian prisoners of war are held had left 50 dead.
"A deliberate Russian war crime", according to Volodymyr Zelensky.
Why should people evacuate?
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk announced several weeks ago that she wanted to evacuate the populations of Donetsk.
A decision motivated by the destruction of the gas networks and the absence of heating next winter in the region.
Volodymyr Zelensky's stated priority is to protect his people.
Nearly 200,000 people are still there.
By taking the decision to remove them from this territory, thousands of lives would potentially be saved.
The lack of resources also comes into play.
The population represents “a burden” in this area, since it no longer works.
“If we can stop losing logistics to feed 200,000 people and we can allocate it to armament and food for the soldiers, that would be better,” underlines Xavier Tytelman, military aviator.
How will the residents be evacuated?
According to Ukrainian human rights officer Dmytro Lubinetsk, the Red Cross and the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission should be present in the area to help those who will leave for the west from the country.
The inhabitants of Donetsk will be evacuated by land, but "especially not by plane".
Trains and transport will be chartered.
The Ukrainian airspace being very controlled by Russia, the risks are great, according to General Palomeros, former Chief of Staff of the Air Force.
What are the risks for those who remain?
Those who remain in Donetsk should expect to experience the same scenario as in Mariupol.
After long weeks of resisting, the 2,500 Ukrainian fighters, confined in the Azovstal steel site, had surrendered to the Russian forces.
They have since been prisoners, despite requests to the UN from Volodymyr Zelensky to guarantee the life and health of these soldiers.
Accusations of torture against these prisoners emerge every day.
Faced with this, the European Union condemned Friday evening “the atrocities committed by the Russian forces”.
According to Jean-Paul Paloméros, the inhabitants of Donetsk will be bombarded, even “russified”, that is to say become Russians by force.
Because “what Russia takes, it does not give back”.
According to the national police in charge of the operation “52,000 children are in Donetsk oblast”.
Evacuate to better bounce back?
General Palomeros also welcomes a "courageous and wise decision" on the part of the Ukrainian president, who must ensure the "territorial sovereignty of his country and preserve the borders".
There is no question of “losing a square meter of land in the area”.
According to him, the choice of Volodymyr Zelensky in no way announces a withdrawal of Ukrainian military forces from Donbass.
On the contrary, the soldiers “will be able to concentrate on defensive lines facing Russia”, without worrying about the populations on the spot.
These evacuations will also solve "a secondary problem", according to military aviator Xavier Tytelman.
In general, 80% of the population of Donetsk fled in the face of the arrival of the Russians.
Among the inhabitants who remain, some are favorable to the invader and inform him about the movements of the Ukrainian army.
The more the region is emptied, the easier it will be for Ukraine to recognize those who do not support it.