Ukraine Fighting Spreads to Key Port City as Rebels Attack 25 ม.ค. 2558 16:33:28 People walk past a destroyed truck after shelling in the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol yesterday. At least 30 civilians died and 93 were wounded in rocket attacks Saturday in Mariupol, local officials said. Photographer: STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images Fighting in Ukraine spread to the strategic port city of Mariupol, which suffered the deadliest attack yet as pro-Russian rebels mounted an offensive across the country’s easternmost regions. At least 30 civilians died in rocket attacks Saturday in Mariupol, local officials said. The projectiles were launched from rebel-held territories, according to the U.S., NATO, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and Ukrainian authorities. The separatists blamed government forces for the shelling, according to a statement on the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic’s website. “Fighting in eastern Ukraine has sharply escalated, with indications of a large-scale offensive by Russian-backed separatists,” North Atlantic Treaty Organization Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in an e-mailed statement. “This is in utter disregard of the cease-fire.” The battles erupting along the Sea of Azov coast indicate further escalation after fighting intensified this month, eradicating a truce signed in September. The death toll rose to more than 5,000 since the crisis began last April, according to the United Nations, which said Friday that Jan. 13-21 was “the most deadly period” in the conflict since the cease-fire was signed in Minsk, Belarus. Overnight Shelling Peole look at a burning shop after shelling in the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol yesterday. The battles erupting along the Sea of Azov coast indicate further escalation after fighting intensified this month, eradicating a truce signed in September. Photographer: Stringer/AFP via Getty Images Saturday night was relatively calm, though rebels shelled government troops nine times in several locations, the Defense Ministry in Kiev said on Facebook. The situation in Mariupol, where the attacks also wounded 95 people, was “stable,” the city council said on its website. President Petro Poroshenko declared a day of mourning, he said on his website Sunday. Separatists were involved in “active defense activities along the whole line of engagement” in the past 24 hours, the Donetsk rebels said on their website. The rocket attacks on Mariupol “appear to have been launched indiscriminately into civilian areas, which would constitute a violation of international humanitarian law,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon’s office said in a statement dated Jan. 24. “The Secretary-General further denounces yesterday’s unilateral withdrawal from the cease-fire by rebel leadership, and particularly their provocative statements about claiming further territory,” according to the statement. “The Secretary-General urges all concerned to redouble their efforts to revive the Minsk accords.”
Posted on: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 14:55:38 +0000
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