You're reading: Another five Ukrainian soldiers killed amid surge in fighting in Donbas

Five Ukrainian servicemen have been killed and eight wounded in the past 24 hours amid a surge in fighting along the frontline of Donbas, the Ukraine’s military said on July 21.

Intense firearms clashes and shelling were reported overnight near one hot spot – the village of Krymske in the Luhansk Oblast – and also near the city of Avdiyivka in Donetsk Oblast, Ministry of Defense spokesman Andriy Lysenko said at a briefing in Kyiv on July 21.

Between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. on July 20, Ukrainian defensive positions at the Butovka coal main came under attack by a barrage of about 50 mortar shells, Lysenko said, adding that Ukrainian forces gave heavy return fire.

Later, at 1.30 a.m. on July 21, Ukrainian positions near the city of Krasnohorivka suffer a 90-minute barrage of shelling from 120- and 82-millimeter mortars, as well as 122-millimeter artillery. Fresh clashes were also recorded near the town of Stanytsya Luhanska in Luhansk Oblast and at the village of Vodyane near Donetsk airport.

Three of the soldiers died in the shelling in Krasnohorivka, one was killed at Butovka, and another was killed by an enemy sniper at Novhorodske.

Seven of the eight wounded servicemen received their injuries at Krasnohorivka, while the other soldier was wounded at Butovka, Lysenko said.

Russian-backed forces had also sustained heavy casualties, Ukraine’s military press center said early on July 21. However, the center gave no figures of enemy losses.

The upsurge of heavy fighting in Donbas between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed troops has been going on since July 19, primarily at the hots pot near the city of Krasnohorivka west of the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk. After nearly three days of intense combat clashes in the region, Ukraine’s forces have lost at least 15 servicemen killed, the heaviest death toll for the army in 2017. Another 24 soldiers have been wounded.

Ukraine’s military revealed more detailed information on the July 20 assault on the army positions at Krasnohorivka, which took the lives of three Ukrainian soldiers.

At 4.00 a.m., Russian-backed forces launched a massive barrage of shelling on Ukrainian trenches with 120-millimeter mortars and at least four tanks, according to the military press center. During the barrage, an enemy subversive group of 10-15 militants, allegedly belonging to a Russian proxy force called the Oplot Battalion, approached Ukrainian lines.

Ukrainian forces detected the commando squad and engaged it. Two Ukrainian soldiers were killed within the first minutes of the engagement, according to a Ukrainian military report. However, the militant squad also lost two fighters in the early stage of the clash.

Taking into account the battle casualties and the ferocity of the enemy assault, Ukrainian forces decided to withdraw to an intermediate position and consolidate. During the retreat, one more soldier was killed and another soldier went missing. Later, it what discovered that he had been dazed by shellfire and taken prisoner.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian combat units were reinforced and then consolidated to repel the militant offensive.

“Caught under pressure of intense gunfire from Ukrainian lines, the enemy was forced to retreat under the protection of tanks, mortars and the portable Grad rocket units,” the military report says.

Three more Ukrainian soldiers were injured as they repelled the attack, Ukraine’s military said.

By 6 a.m. the shelling had partially died down, and Ukrainian forces brought in ambulances to evacuate the wounded. However, a 120-millimeter mortar shell impacted close to an evacuation squad, injuring more four servicemen. The fierce battle also targeted residential areas of Krasnohorivka, with one house reported to have been damaged by enemy shelling.

The assault on Krasnohorivka on July 20 cost Russian-backed forces at least six fighters killed and eight wounded in action, the Ukrainian military claimed, referring to information from intercepted enemy radio traffic and to eyewitness reports of the fighting.

Three of the dead Ukrainian servicemen will be posthumously decorated with the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, 3rd Class, while the wounded fighters will be give Orders For Courage, the military press service said.

Russian-backed forces abandoned weapons and ammunition on retreating from the battlefield – photos provided by the Ukrainian military show several Kalashnikov assault rifles and a quantity of 7.62-millimeter cartridges.

During a briefing in Kyiv on July 21, Lysenko also said Russian-backed forces had left behind two RPG-7 grenade launchers and ammunition for them.

Several unused medical kits were also found on the battlefield. The dates on packaging indicated they had been made in Russia:

  • first aid kits, produced by the Vladex company located in Serpukhov, Moscow Oblast, Russia. On its website, the company claims its products are designed in cooperation with medics from the Russian Ministry of Defense.
  • sterile bandages produced by the Newfarm company from the city of Kishnema, in Ivanovo Oblast, Russia.
  • tourniquets, produced by the Alphaplastic Company in Moscow. The company says it is the biggest producer of health care products in Russia.
  • chemical body warming pads, produced by the SOTA Limited company registered in the city of Fryazino, Moscow Oblast, Russia.

 

The weapons and medical products found after the militant withdrawal are an “arsenal of proof” that Russian regular army units are engaged in the Donbas, Ukraine’s military said.