Rebels, Ukrainians claim more ceasefire violations
2016-03-05
Posted by: badanov
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By Chris Covert
Rantburg.com
Donetsk head of state Aleksandr Zakharchenko signed an agreement on Friday which will ban all live fire exercises by both sides in this nearly two year old civil war, according to Russian language news accounts.
Negotiators from the rebel, Ukrainian and Russian sides have been working on an agreement for a prisoner swap as well as the latest ban since last week, but so far only the live fire ban has been signed. The ban stops all live ammunition firing for practice within a 300 kilometer zone along the line of contact.
Despite this latest agreement by both sides, both side continue to fire on the other using artillery, 30mm autocannon and small arms fire.
According to data supplied by the Donetsk ministry of defense, Ukrainian forces violated the ceasefire Friday 190 times, with areas near northern western Donetsk city being the most active.
According to Donetsk ministry of defense spokesman Lt. Colonel Eduard Basurin, Ukrainian forces fired on rebel positions in Peski, Marinka, Zhovanke, Opytnoye, and Zamozhniy Pavlopole in Donetsk, and in Gorlovka further north.
Other settlements/villages fired on include Zaytsevo, Spartak, Staromykhailivka, Zhabichevo, Sosnovsky, Gagarin mine, Donetsk airport and Volvo Center and in Petrovsky district, specifically in the village of Trudovskoy, near Donetsk city.
Weapons used included 82mm and 120mm mortars, 30mm autocannon fire from BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, grenade launchers and 23/2mm antiaircraft guns.
According to a news report which appeared on censor.net.ua website, Ukrainian military officials say the rebels "grossly" violated the ceasefire on Thursday including the launching of 122mm rocket artillery at their positions near western Donetsk. A Ukrainian soldier was reported wounded in Peski from rebel gunfire.
A Ukrainian soldier was reportedly killed by a rebel sniper near Stanitsa-Luganksaya while on patrol near the river.
On Friday, another Ukrainian military official identified as Major Sergey Zhmurko said that rebel forces violated the ceasefire 57 times, with shooting concentrated in Marinka and Peski in western Donetsk city, and in Mayorsk, Troitskoye and Lugansk city in Lugansk.
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 Ukraine by clicking here.
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