OSCE: Tensions in the Donetsk region remain high
The level of tension in the Donbas region remains high. The observers of the Special Monitoring Mission of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) note the increase in violations of the ceasefire near the Donetsk region, the Principal Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, Alexander Hug, said at a press conference on Friday, July 15, 2016 in Kiev, according to Interfax-Ukraine.
“The level of violence remains high. The number of attacks has doubled in the area of Avdiivka—Yasynuvata—Donetsk. This area accounts for 70% of the cases of violations,” he said. “Also the number of violations increased by 10% in the area of Horlivka city,” Hug said.
On July 14, 2016 parties to the conflict reported an increase in the number of attacks in the Donbas region.
Armed confrontations between Ukrainian security forces and separatists of the self-proclaimed republics of the Donbas region have been ongoing since April 2014. According to the latest UN data, since the start of the conflict in the Donbass, 9,449 people have died and 21,843 people have been wounded. About two thousand victims were civilians.