 Russia is sending wounded soldiers back into battle. Wounded soldiers are being sent back to the trenches in an effort to capture a key Ukrainian city in time for President Vladimir Putin's annual phone-in, according to the families of soldiers. Independent Russian outlet Important Stories obtained a letter addressed to Putin, signed by more than 100 relatives of soldiers fighting around Abdiivka in Ukraine's Donetsk region. Business Insider Family members of the 9-5-4-1-1 unit from Russia's Western Military District said that on November 25, a directive was issued ordering soldiers with mild to moderate injuries to be sent back into the trenches. Important stories reported. The families complained that the commander's deployment of soldiers there was tantamount to their deliberate extermination, according to a translation published by Medusa, an independent Russian outlet. They said that soldiers had been living in trenches 700 meters from Abdiivka for over 10 months and were under constant fire, according to important stories. They show no mercy. The families reportedly said of the commanders, they gather up the remains, then it's back into the storm. Abdiivka has become the site of Russia's most intensive fight in recent months, drawing comparisons to the long siege of Bakhmut.