Ukraine Day 1137: LIVE UPDATES BELOW. Two Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 7 wounded in battle with Russia-backed forces today; 1 separatist soldier was wounded; a civilian man was reported killed by Ukrainian shelling in Yasinovayata.
Yesterday’s live coverage of the Ukraine conflict can be found here.
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An Invasion By Any Other Name: The Kremlin’s Dirty War in Ukraine
An apartment building in February 2017, damaged from shelling by Russia-backed forces. Photo by Unian.
In its morning dispatch, the ATO [Anti-Terrorist Operation] said 2 Ukrainian soldiers were killed near Avdeyevka (Avdiivka) and 3 wounded with over 80 attacks from Russia-backed forces, Unian reported:
On the Mariupol line, strongpoints near Shyrokine, Hnutove and Vodiane were shelled with 122 mm artillery systems. Russian mercenaries also fired 120mm mortars at positions near Hnutove, and 82mm mortars, large-caliber machine guns and grenade launchers – at Maryinka, Vodiane and Pavlopil. An enemy tank fired at positions near Vodiane, while IFV weapons were used against Ukrainian marines deployed in Shyrokine. Enemy snipers were active near Hnutove and Vodiane,” the HQ reported. Read also Ukrainian soldier killed by enemy sniper in Donbas on WednesdayIn the Donetsk direction, near Troyitske, the enemy used 152mm artillery. Strongpoints of Ukrainian troops near Avdiyivka, Troyitske, and Luhanske were shelled with 120mm mortars, while defenders of Opytne, Avdiyivka, and Kamianka were shelled with 82mm mortars. In Troyitske, an enemy tank opened fire, and an IFV – in Luhanske. Strongpoints near Kamianka and Nevelske were fired upon with large-caliber machine guns and grenade launchers of various types.On the Luhansk line, near the village of Kalinovo-Popasna, the use by the enemy of a 122mm artillery was spotted. 120mm mortars, IFV weapons, and grenade launchers of various types were used by the enemy against Ukrainian positions near Krymske. The enemy also fired large-caliber machine guns and grenade launchers at positions near Stanytsia Luhanska and Novo-Oleksandrivka.
Then in the evening, the ATO reported an additional 3 wounded and 1 concussed, bringing the total of WIA today to 7.
Translation: across from the toy store (?), aftermath of shelling last night 3/30/17.
The pro-Russian news site News-Front reported that a man was killed from shelling in Yasinovataya [Warning: Graphic].
Translation: Yasninovataya. Today. A tank shell landed in an apartment. A man was killed. Damn you, monsters.
The Novorossiya MIA (Youth News Agency) said one man was killed at No. 7 Festival’naya Street and a second man was also reportedly killed, and the information was being checked.
In his briefing today, Eduard Basurin, the self-styled deputy commander of the forces of the self-declared “Donetsk People’s Republic, said that Ukrainian forces stepped up attacks in advance of the ceasefire. He said one DNR soldier was wounded but did not mention any civilian deaths. Eighteen homes were reported damaged.
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) reported on attacks on its monitors today.
— Catherine A. Fitzpatrick
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