Cannon fire is heard in the center of Donetsk. A video from the scene was broadcast on February 20 by an Izvestia correspondent.
On the night of February 20, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) reportedly carried out five attacks on three settlements of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) in two hours.
In addition, the Izvestia correspondent reports that the sounds of explosions are now clearly audible from the outskirts of Donetsk, so the shelling has been going on for three hours. Local residents report that the sounds of gunfire can be heard especially well in the Voroshilovsky district in the center of Donetsk.
Earlier that night, the JCCC reported that Ukrainian security forces had shelled eight settlements in the republic. At the same time, local residents reported shots in the Tekstilshchik and Mirny microdistricts, as well as on Svoboda Square.
On the evening of February 19, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) shelled the village of Shirokaya Balka and the city of Dokuchaevsk in the DPR in the evening.
It also became known that a Ukrainian shell hit a house on a farm in the Mityakinsky rural settlement of the Rostov region on the border with Ukraine.
In addition, on Saturday, two artillery shells exploded in the Tarasovsky district of the Rostov region. Traces of two shells were found near the village of Mityakinskaya.
The Investigative Committee of Russia opened a case on the fact of the shelling of the Rostov region from the territory of Ukraine. According to the investigation, using a multiple launch rocket system, on February 19, attackers fired at the border areas of the Tarasovsky district of the Rostov region. However, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba denied accusations of shelling the Rostov region. According to him, Ukrainian shells did not hit Russian territory.
The situation on the line of contact in Donbass escalated on February 17. The DPR and LPR reported heavy shelling by Ukrainian security forces, including with heavy weapons.
Since 2014, the Kiev authorities have been conducting a military operation against the inhabitants of Donbass, who refused to recognize the results of the coup d’état and the new government in Ukraine. At the same time, Kiev blames Moscow for the current situation. Russia has repeatedly stated that it is not a party to the intra-Ukrainian conflict. The issues of its settlement are being discussed in the Minsk and Normandy formats.