Two Ukrainian servicemen were killed in action and eight more were wounded in combat in the ATO zone yesterday. “Three wounded soldiers are National Guard servicemen and the others are Ukrainian Armed Forces troops. One soldier was wounded near Maryinka and the other losses were incurred near Avdiivka,” informed Ukrainian Ministry of Defense spokesman on ATO Colonel Andriy Lysenko at a press briefing at Ukraine Crisis Media Center.
The situation escalated in Donetsk sector, where militants conducted 20 attacks using heavy weapons seven times. “Militants repeatedly used heavy armor, mostly near Avdiivka and north of Horlivka. The enemy was actively shelling Avdiivka and Shakhta Butovka position with tank weapons and mortars of various calibers from 17:00 to 21:00. During this time militants fired at positions of Ukrainian Armed Forces almost 60 rounds,” said the spokesman.
Two residential buildings in Avdiivka were damaged by militants’ mortar attacks. Thankfully, no civilians were injured. “Moreover, militants’ shells damaged power line, resulting in five adjacent villages being cut off electricity supply. Power and water supply was not interrupted in Avdiivka itself,” said Col. Lysenko. Militants conducted three mortar attacks near Verkhniotoretske and one more near Luhanske, employing armored personnel carriers in both incidents. In Troitske, Horlivka perimeter and near the Donetsk airport militants repeatedly provoked Ukrainian troops with small arms and grenade launchers fire.
In Mariupol sector militants used mortars three times yesterday – twice in Maryinka in the morning and in Krasnohorivka in the afternoon. They continued conducting armed provocations with light weapons, mostly in Pavlopil – Shyrokyne frontline. Militants’ sniping teams opened fire in the near Lebedynske. Moreover, Russia-backed militant groups were shooting from APC weapons near Vodiane and Shyrokyne. “23 hostile attacks took place in Mariupol sector yesterday, and three of them involved mortars,” added the spokesman.
In Luhansk sector militants shelled Katerynivka twice, using mortars once. Two more incidents occurred in Donets station near Stanytsia Luhanska, and in Novozvanivka.
Report on the military developments as of April 20 is available here. Interactive data on the shelling: chronology shelling chart and the interactive map.
