Donetsk: Kiev loses over 200 soldiers in just 24 hours

© REUTERS/ Alexander Ermochenko

At least 200 Ukrainian soldiers and eight eastern Ukrainian independence supporters, as well as numerous civilians, have been killed in the last 24 hours of heavy fighting, the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic's (DPR) militia headquarters reported Monday.

"Approximately 200 people were killed and injured. Losses among the militia are eight killed and 37 injured," Donetsk headquarters commander Eduard Basurin said.

At least nine civilians were killed and another 44 were injured in battles between Kiev forces and the independence supporters, Basurin added. One 4-year-old girl is dead and four other children injured in the fighting.

"Victims among civilians: 44 injured, including four children. One child is currently in intensive care in serious condition. Nine people have died, among them a girl who is four years old," he added.

Fighting in eastern Ukraine intensified this weekend, as Kiev forces shelled populated areas in Donetsk and Luhansk in violation of the ceasefire.

On Sunday, the Russian Foreign Ministry expressed deep concern over resumed military actions in Donbas stating that Kiev has used the truce that has been in place since September 2014 to regroup their forces and continue fighting.

The internal conflict in eastern Ukraine first erupted in April, when Kiev launched a military operation against independence supporters in the country's eastern regions, who refused to recognize the legitimacy of a new government that had come to power following a February coup.

On September 5, 2014, the opposing sides reached a ceasefire agreement at a Contact Group meeting in Minsk. The provisions for the ceasefire implementation were agreed on during the next round of Minsk talks that took place on September 19, 2014. However, during the past months, both opposing sides have repeatedly accused the other of violating the truce.

Comment: See also:

• SOTT Exclusive: Kiev breaks ceasefire, launches major offensive in E. Ukraine - Donetsk retakes airport

It looks like Poroshenko really IS that stupid. That, or he's simply doing whatever he's ordered to do by the CIA station chief. Did he really think this latest offensive would be a success? Ukrainian forces are losing... hard. They're fleeing Peski. Their attempt to retake the airport failed. And while the defenders of Donetsk and Lugansk fight their invaders, the Ukrainians bomb civilians. Basurin also reported: destruction of 81 buildings, 56 shellings of civilian areas.

Chomsky: We Are All – Fill in the Blank.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at http://bit.ly/1xcsdoI.