Artillery attacks continue in Donetsk
2015-08-20
Posted by: badanov
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By Chris Covert
Rantburg.com
Artillery exchanges between rebel and Ukrainian forces continued, albeit on a lesser scale, according to Russian language news account.
According to raw data supplied by the VKontakte page of Russian reserve FSB Colonel Igor Girkin, artillery attacks continued in southern areas of Donetsk, near Mariupol and Telmanovo, Donetsk city and its suburbs and near Gorlovka. Additionally, some rebel units have reported direct fire combat with Ukrainian patrols, specifically near Telmanovo and near Marinka, which a suburb of Donetsk city.
According to rebel reports, early on August 19th, a Ukrainian artillery spotting unit was captured by rebels near the village of Yasnoye, which is near Dokuchaevsk. In Spartak, near Donetsk, rebel and Ukrainian forces exchanged small arms fire, after shelling by Ukrainian forces. A reporter in the area said that rebel forces were firing artillery to cover movement of their own troops in or out of the area.
Ukrainian artillery struck rebel positions near Dokuchaevsk on Wednesday, and at a nearby farm and at Yasnoye. A separate report said that Ukrainian artillery fire originated from the Volnovakha area to the west.
Another infantry fight was recorded at Marinka and Aleksandrovka, near western Donetsk city between rebel and Ukrainian forces. Rebel reports say Ukrainian forces used tanks as infantry support against rebel positions. Ukrainian media said that rebels used tanks as well.
The Donetsk ministry of defense said that replacement elements of the volunteer Kyiv-1 Battalion arrived at Marinka. Last June, when rebel forces launched an attack in the region, rebel media said that the unit simply broke and fled the area. The same rebel report said an unidentified private military unit had arrived at Marinka. Rebel media have continually reported that Ukrainian forces were being reinforced in some areas along with line of contact, presumably, for an offensive.
Ukrainian also said that rebel rocket artillery struck Ukrainian positions in Avdievka and at Opytnoye. Small arms firefights were reported as well.
An official announcement by the Donetsk ministry of defense said that Ukrainian artillery fired on rebel positions in the Petrovsky and Kuibyshevsky districts of Donetsk city, and at the Donetsk airport.
Rebel media said that Ukrainian artillery fired on Belokamenka and in the Mariupol area at Sahanka. The Donetsk ministry of defense said their intelligence located Ukrainian artillery positions in Primorskoye, which is about 20 kilometers northeast of Mariupol.
Chris Covert writes about foreign military issues for Rantburg.com. He can be reached at grurkka@gmail.com and on Twitter. You can read past articles about the 2014 war in southeastern Ukraina by clicking here.
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