1 Ukrainian Soldier Killed, 5 Wounded; Russia-Backed Fighters Attack; Villagers Spend Night in Cellars, Homes Damaged

A man in the Ukrainian village of Olginka tapes a window broken by shelling from Russia-backed forces June 12, 2017. Photo by Unian

Ukraine Day 1211: LIVE UPDATES BELOW. One Ukrainian soldier was killed and five wounded in the previous reporting period.

Yesterday’s coverage of the Ukraine conflict can be found here.

An Invasion By Any Other Name: The Kremlinâ€™s Dirty War in Ukraine

2017-06-13 06:18:15

Village home damaged by Russia-backed shelling. Photo by Unian

Russia-backed forces attacked Ukrainian positions 57 times in the previous reporting period, Liga.net reported, citing the ATO [Anti-Terrorist Operation] morning dispatch.

One Ukrainian soldier was killed and 5 were wounded, said the ATO in its morning dispatch.

Separatist fighters continued to use weapons barred by the Minsk agreement and to strike civilian areas.

On the Maritime line, 152-mm artillery was used to attack Grfskoye and Olginka; an armed BMP and grenade-launchers were fired on Maryinka, causing a home on Oktyabrskaya Street to catch fire. There were no civilian casualties.

Near Shirokino, Vodyanoye, Talakovka, Gnutovo and Beryozovaya, grenade-launchers and small arms were fired.

On the Donetsk line, it was relatively quiet with only one shot near Luganskoye. But towards evening, militants fired on ATO positions in the southern suburb of Avdeyevka and at the village of Kamenka, using 82-mm and 120-mm mortar-launchers. They also fired 125-mm tank shells at the residential area of Avdeyevka, damaging homes on Ostrovskogo and Gagarina streets. There were no casualties. They also fired heavy machine guns at Zaytsevo, where an armed BMP was also used. Grenade-launchers and small arms were also fired on Optynoye and Nevelskoye.

On the Lugank line, there were attacks on Troitskoye, Kryakova, Novotoshkovskoye, Katerinkovka, Tryokhizbenka, Zolotoye and Novoaleksandrovka using 82-mm and 120-mm variously. Anti-tank missiles were used on Novoaleksandrovka and an armed BMP was fired on Krymskoye. Grenade-launchers and small arms were fired on ATO positions at Zhyoltoye, Lobachevo, Novotoshkovskoye, Stanitsa Luganskaya and Malinovoye.

Unian reported that there was shelling of the village of Zhovanka, where a home on Arsenyeva St. was damaged. There were no casualties.

Also two other villages were shelled, Olginka and Grafskoye (Grafske) (formerly called Komsomolskoye), and homes were damaged.

According to a police report (translation by The Interpreter):

“People spent the whole night in cellars. About 5:00 am the shells landed in the village of Grafskoye damaging a dormitory where students from the forestry college were living. The police are working at the site. In the village of Olginka in Volnovakha District, Tsentralnaya Street fell under fire from the terrorists. As a result of shelling, the sub-station was damaged and 140 homes were left without electricity. When the shells started landing in the middle of the village, resident were forced to leave home and hide in their basements.”

Ukrainian activists and ATO veterans demonstrated in support of Russian anti-corruption protesters today, Unian reported. As we reported, there were numerous arrests, including opposition leader Alexey Navalny, who was sentenced to 30 days in jail for marching without a permit, and some 1,500 others across Russia.

— Catherine A. Fitzpatrick

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