Kyiv, 16 December 2014 – The situation in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone was not subject to considerable change within the last 24 hours. “The ATO HQ reports terrorists opened fire 9 times. Making use of the break in combat actions terrorist groups continue their attacks on the positions of our troops using artillery, mortars, “Grad” and small arms,” informed Leonyd Matyukhyn, ATO spokesman via Skype at a briefing at the Ukraine Crisis Media Center.
Luhansk, Donetsk and Debaltseve footholds remain the areas of highest activity by illegal armed groups. “Bandits opened fire at the supply convoy that was heading to the Donetsk airport defenders. The attack was repelled. All vehicles broke through to the “Cyborgs’” positions,” added Leonyd Matyukhyn. Terrorists did not comply with the ceasefire, as a result Ukrainian military positions near Krymske, Novotoshkivske, Trudivsky, Debaltseve, Chornukhyne localities came under fire. Terrorists intentionally fired twice at residential areas in the localities. It resulted in no civilian casualties. “Since the ceasefire regime was announced (from 18.00 of 5 September to 06.00 of 16 December) militants of the illegal armed groups have fired 4263 times at the positions of Ukrainian defense and law enforcement agencies,” informed Vladyslav Seleznyov, acting spokesman of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces at the briefing.
