An evacuee from Artemovsk spoke to a Sputnik correspondent and revealed that the Ukrainian authorities and members of the military in Artemovsk were in the habit of abducting children from residents and, under threats of being stripped of their parental rights, parents were forced to leave for areas under Kiev's control.
Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that the liberation of the city of Bakhmut had been completed.
The hotly contested Artemovsk (Bakhmut), north of the city of Donetsk, has been the center of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine for months. The city is an important transport hub, with many crossroads for Donbass, and used to serve as a vital center for supplying Ukrainian troops stationed in the region at the beginning of the special military operation launched by Russia in Ukraine more than a year ago.