{"id":69250,"date":"2017-03-21T12:40:03","date_gmt":"2017-03-21T12:40:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/uacrisis.org\/?p=53923"},"modified":"2017-03-21T12:42:26","modified_gmt":"2017-03-21T10:42:26","slug":"53923-intense-hostilities-take-place-krymske-novoaydar-district-avdiivka-outskirts-defense-ministry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uacrisis.org\/en\/53923-intense-hostilities-take-place-krymske-novoaydar-district-avdiivka-outskirts-defense-ministry","title":{"rendered":"Most intense hostilities take place at Krymske, Novoaydar district and in Avdiivka and its outskirts – Defense Ministry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Overall, the number of ceasefire violations ranged between 50 on Sunday, March 19, and 112 on Friday, March 17. <\/em><\/p>\n

The situation on the frontline did not change significantly. \u201cMost active hostilities, during the previous week, took place at Krymske, Novoaydar district, in Avdiivka and its outskirts and in the south of the Mariupol sector\u201d, stated Vilyen Pidgornyy, Ministry of Defense spokesperson during\u00a0a press briefing at Ukraine Crisis Media Center. The share of enemy indirect fire episodes last week remained unchanged in comparison with the preceding week and amounted to 44%. In contrast, incidents of enemy sniper fire decreased in actual numbers and reached 12, comparing to 22 over the foregoing week.<\/p>\n

Luhansk sector<\/strong><\/p>\n

Last week Russia-backed militants engaged Ukrainian Armed Forces in the sector with mortars and cannon artillery. The enemy remains consistent while choosing their target areas week after week: Krymske, Popasna area and Troitske regularly came under enemy fire of low and medium intensity. \u201cHowever, on March 16 there was an unexpected development in Lobacheve. At 20:30 pro-Russia proxies opened fire with 82 mm mortars that resulted in casualties on the part of Ukrainian defenders. That day, militants treacherously used 122 mm artillery during\u00a0nighttime against Troitske and Novozvanivka. The same day, the enemy fire wounded\u00a0a teenager in Valuiske village of Stanytsia Luhanska district\u201d, Mr. Pidgornyy said. On March 13, Russia-equipped militants used mortars\u00a0 at Krymske three times, having fired more than 210 rounds. On March 14, the enemy has paused mortar attacks in the daytime just so that their sniper groups could advance to the front line and open direct fire against Novozvanivka, Novooleksandrivka and Zhovte. On March 18, Krymske was attacked with heavy weapons\u00a0five times. Enemy artillery crews fired more than 150 mortar bombs and rounds of different caliber during one artillery and four mortar attacks. Additionally, the enemy opened tank fire. Last week, the daily number of cease-fire violations by the enemy in the sector ranged between 12 (on March 16) and 25 (on March 18).<\/p>\n

Donetsk sector<\/strong><\/p>\n

Positions of Ukrainian Armed Forces in this sector were targeted with most intense enemy fire. Russia-backed militants opened short but multiple mortar and artillery fire along the whole front line, being most active in Avdiivka area. The militants engaged Ukrainian positions day and night. In the evening of March 15, the enemy artillery crews opened a severe artillery fire at our rear positions in Klishchiivka, south of Bakhmut, having fired nearly 80 rounds over an hour and a half. Similar to the previous week the enemy opened tank fire in Avdiivka and adjacent areas and used infantry fighting vehicles in Luhanske, Verhniotoretske and Zaitseve. Last week, the daily fire activity of the enemy ranged between 31 (on March 18) and 52 cease-fire violations (on March 17).<\/p>\n

Mariupol sector<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Traditionally, the majority of cease-fire violations took place in the Pavlopil \u2013 Shyrokyne area of the front line. However, last week the militants several times used heavy weapons in the northern part of the sector, namely in Krasnohorivka, Maryinka, Berezove and Novotroitske. In the morning of March 13, the enemy sniper groups advanced to the front line. In the afternoon, the enemy artillery crews opened indirect fire at Pavlopil. In the early morning of March 14, enemy tank engaged our positions in Maryinka and fired nearly 20 shells in ten minutes. On March 16, the enemy launched a two-hour-long combined attack on Novotroitske, having fired the total of 50 artillery rounds and mortar bombs. \u201cMarch 17 was marked by the highest intensity of enemy fire.\u00a0 The enemy artillery opened fire at Krasnohorivka, Maryinka, Hnutove, Vodiane, Lebedynske and Shyrokyne. On March 18, Russia-trained militants used artillery at Vodiane having fired nearly 50 rounds\u201d, added Mr Vilyen Pidgornyy. Last week, the number of cease-fire violations by the enemy ranged between 29 (on March 18) and 46 (on March 17).<\/p>\n

According to Mr. Pidgornyy, compared with the foregoing week, the intensity of UAVs use by the militants decreased from almost three a day to the total of 9 episodes of hostile drones flights during the whole last week in the ATO area. The enemy conducted aerial reconnaissance both in the tactical rear of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and at the very front line near Avdiivka, at Svitlodarsk and Krymske village.<\/p>\n

Russia delivered fuel to the occupied territories of Ukraine in 24 railroad tank cars. On Saturday, March 18, eight trucks carrying ammunition for militants crossed the Ukrainian-Russian border near Dmytrivka village, Donetsk region. Besides, on Thursday, March 16, the sixty-second so-called \u201chumanitarian convoy\u201d from Russia delivered unidentified cargo for the needs of militants through Izvaryne and Uspenka checkpoints that are not controlled by the Ukrainian government. Ukrainian military intelligence confirmed the \u201cconvoy\u201d consisted of 40 trucks carrying over 500 tons of cargo.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Casualties<\/strong><\/p>\n

Last week, 7 Ukrainian servicemen were killed in action. Forty soldiers were wounded in action, including\u00a0 the National Guard of Ukraine officer.<\/p>\n

Five civilians were wounded in\u00a0enemy shellings in the conflict area last week. \u201cThis includes one teenager in Valuiske, Luhansk sector, a woman in Luhanske, two women and a man in Avdiivka, Donetsk sector. One of the wounded women in Avdiivka was a volunteer. All wounded civilians received medical assistance in a timely manner\u201d, MOD spokesperson stated.<\/p>\n

Damage to civilian infrastructure<\/strong><\/p>\n

Twenty-nine residential buildings were damaged in the indirect fire conducted\u00a0by the Russian proxies in the Donetsk and Mariupol sectors. Most of them are in Avdiivka. Three non-residential buildings were damaged by the enemy shelling in Avdiivka and Krasnohorivka. Mortar and artillery rounds directly hit a kindergarten in Avdiivka, humanitarian supplies distribution hub in Zaitseve, power line in Hnutove, and railway track sections in the frontline area in the Donetsk sector.<\/p>\n