The army had to leave the field. A bitter defeat attributed to the superior Russian artillery and air force.
Suddenly, everything happened extremely quickly. At first it was said that there was a partial withdrawal from a southern district. But by Friday night it had become a complete withdrawal. “Given the operational situation around Avdiivka, I have decided to withdraw our units from the city and defend it at a more favorable level,” announced Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi. The aim was to prevent the encirclement of Ukrainian units and protect the lives and health of soldiers.
The order to withdraw came as a surprise to many Ukrainians. The Ukrainian General Staff ordered an “orderly withdrawal” from Avdiivka. However, there was no doubt about it. Ukrainian soldiers reported chaotic conditions on social media. Then they had to hastily evacuate their positions in the darkness and literally flee amidst the hail of Russian shells. Numerous wounded were left behind. Some of them contacted family and friends on messaging services like Instagram and WhatsApp.