Latest from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30, 18 June 2017

This report is for the media and the general public.

Between the evenings of 16 and 17 June the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 17 and 18 June the Mission recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous 24 hours. It confirmed one elderly woman had died from a gunshot wound in Sakhanka. The SMM observed damage to multiple civilian properties due to shelling in Shchastia, Starolaspa, Yasynuvata and Obozne. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Stanytsia Luhanska and Zolote disengagement areas, and aerial imagery available to the SMM revealed a new trench inside the Petrivske disengagement area, on the non-government-controlled side. The Mission’s access remained restricted there and elsewhere.* The Mission monitored weapons in violation of withdrawal lines. The SMM observed the presence of unexploded ordnance of a mortar fin near Stanytsia Luhanska and, for the first time, multiple mine hazard signs near Lyman. The Mission observed long queues of civilians travelling across the contact line at Stanytsia Luhanska bridge. It continued to follow up on the water supply situation and to facilitate and monitor repairs to power lines between Almazna and Zolote. In Kyiv the SMM monitored the “March of Equality”.

In Donetsk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations[1] between the evenings of 16 and 17 June, including about 310 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 60 explosions), and more between the evenings of 17 and 18 June, including about 500 explosions, compared with the previous 24 hours.

On the night of 16-17 June, while in “DPR”-controlled Donetsk city centre, the SMM heard 31 undetermined explosions 3-5km north-west and ten undetermined explosions 6-10km north-west. On the evening and night of 17-18 June the SMM heard 12 undetermined explosions 8-10km north-west.

On the evening and night of 16-17 June the SMM camera in government-controlled Avdiivka (17km north of Donetsk) recorded, in sequence, 46 explosions assessed as impacts of rounds of undetermined weapons, 11 tracer rounds in flight from west to east, two tracer rounds in flight from east to west, one airburst, followed by aggregated totals of 15 explosions (one undetermined and 14 assessed as impacts), four illumination flares, 85 projectiles in flight (25 south-west to north-east, 12 north-east to south-west, seven east to west, five west to east and two south to north) and 25 tracer rounds in flight (ten west to east, six east to west, four north to south, three south to north, one south-west to north-east and one north-east to south-west), all 3-6km south-east and east-south-east. The following day, the same camera recorded five undetermined explosions 4-6km east-south-east. Positioned in Avdiivka for about five hours, the SMM heard ten undetermined explosions 3-6km south-east.

On the evening and night of 17-18 June the same camera recorded a total of 108 explosions (67 undetermined, 41 assessed as impacts of rounds of undetermined weapons), ten airbursts and 24 tracer rounds in flight (22 from north to south and two from south to north), all 3-6km south-south-east. The following day, the camera recorded three undetermined explosions 3-5km east-south-east. Positioned in Avdiivka for about four hours, the SMM heard about 30 undetermined explosions and about 40 bursts and shots of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 2-5km north-east and east.

On 17 June, positioned in “DPR”-controlled Yasynuvata (16km north-east of Donetsk) for about six hours, the SMM heard about 40 undetermined explosions, about 35 bursts of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire and about 15 shots of small-arms fire, all 2-5km at directions ranging from south-west to north. The following day, in about six hours the SMM heard 67 undetermined explosions, about 30 minutes of uncountable overlapping shots of small-arms fire and about 30 bursts of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 1-8km at directions ranging from west to north-west.

On the evening and night of 16-17 June, while in “DPR”-controlled Horlivka (39km north-east of Donetsk), in about two hours the SMM heard 61 explosions (five undetermined, 56 assessed as outgoing rounds of undetermined weapons) and three bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire 5-7km north, and 51 explosions (five undetermined, 46 assessed as outgoing rounds of undetermined weapons) and eight bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire 6-7km west. On the evening and night of 17-18 June, in about three hours the SMM heard 63 explosions (15 undetermined, 15 assessed as outgoing rounds of mortar (type undetermined), 15 as outgoing rounds of undetermined weapons, 18 as impacts of mortar (type undetermined) rounds) and eight bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire 6-7km north, and 43 explosions (five undetermined, 21 impacts of rounds of mortar (type undetermined) and undetermined weapons, 17 as outgoing rounds of automatic-grenade-launcher and infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BMP-1) cannon (73mm)) and five bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire 4-5km west.

On 18 June, positioned at the “DPR”-controlled Donetsk central railway station (6km north-west of Donetsk city centre) for about two hours, the SMM heard 21 undetermined explosions and 20 bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire, all 6-10km north and north-north-east.

On the evening and night of 16-17 June, while in government-controlled Svitlodarsk (57km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard 11 explosions (five undetermined, six assessed as outgoing rounds of undetermined weapons) 2-8km south-east and south-west. On the evening and night of 17-18 June the SMM heard 125 undetermined explosions and 35 bursts of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 3-7km south-east.

On the evening and night of 16-17 June the SMM camera in Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol) recorded five explosions assessed as impacts of rounds of undetermined weapons 5-6km north. Approximately two hours later, the camera recorded, in sequence, 30 tracer rounds in flight from west to east, one tracer round in flight from east to west, followed by aggregated totals of nine explosions (six undetermined, three assessed as impacts of rounds of either tank (type undetermined) or anti-tank gun (MT-12 Rapira, 100mm) fire), one illumination flare and 404 tracer rounds in flight (271 from west to east and 133 from east to west), all at unknown distances north. On the evening and night of 17-18 June the same camera recorded, in sequence, 141 tracer rounds in flight from west to east, two undetermined explosions, 14 tracer rounds in flight from west to east, one tracer round in flight from east to west, followed by aggregated totals of five undetermined explosions and 380 tracer rounds in flight (237 from west to east and 143 from east to west), all at unknown distances north and north-east.

On 17 June, positioned in “DPR”-controlled Sakhanka (24km north-east of Mariupol), in about 35 minutes the SMM heard six explosions assessed as outgoing rounds of mortar (type undetermined) at unknown distances south-west and five explosions assessed as outgoing rounds of mortar (type undetermined) at unknown distances north-east.

In Luhansk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations between the evenings of 16 and 17 June, including 116 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (26 explosions). Between the evenings of 17 and 18 June it recorded fewer ceasefire violations, including 20 explosions, compared with the previous 24 hours.

On the night of 17-18 June, while in “LPR”-controlled Luhansk city centre, the SMM heard 13 undetermined explosions 10-20km north-east.

On 17 June, positioned 2.5km north of government-controlled Popasna (69km west of Luhansk), the SMM heard four undetermined explosions about 5km north-east.

The SMM continued to follow up on reports of civilian casualties and damage to civilian properties in residential areas caused by shelling. On 17 June, the SMM visited Sakhanka following up on information provided by the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC) that a woman in her seventies had died from a gunshot wound on 14 June. Six residents in Sakhanka (two men in their forties and four women in their sixties) separately told the SMM that the woman had been struck by a bullet while in the garden of her house at 42 Havrylenko Street. They also said that the deceased woman had been buried in Sakhanka on 16 June.

On 16 June, the SMM observed four impact sites in government-controlled Shchastia (20km north of Luhansk). The SMM saw a fresh crater on soft ground about 50m south-east of a parking lot of the Shchastia Power Plant. In the parking lot the SMM saw a fresh crater in the asphalt and shrapnel spray about 70m north of the SMM’s forward patrol base on T-1309. The SMM also saw a fresh crater 70cm north of a shop on H-21 road. On a secondary street of Donetska Street the SMM saw a fresh crater 30cm south-east of a garage and noted that the garage’s gate had multiple holes assessed as having been caused by shrapnel impacts. A Ukrainian officer of the JCCC told the SMM that shelling had occurred in the evening of 15 June. The SMM assessed that damage to all above properties had been caused by impacts of 82mm mortar rounds but could not determine the direction of fire.

On 17 June, led by “DPR” members, the SMM observed impact sites in “DPR”-controlled Starolaspa (51km south of Donetsk). At 8 Lenina Street, the SMM saw a fresh crater about 8m east of a house and 250m south-west of a “DPR” checkpoint, assessed as caused by a multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) (BM-21 Grad, 122mm) rocket fired from a south-westerly direction. A rocket casing was visible inside the crater. The SMM also saw several metal fragments, including a curved portion of a steel warhead, near the crater. The SMM observed extensive shrapnel damage to the north-west-facing wall of the house and its north-west-facing windows destroyed. Inside the house, the SMM saw shrapnel damage to an interior wall in the bedroom opposite the broken windows. Three residents of the house (one 34-year-old-man, two 26-and 28-year-old women) told the SMM that they had been asleep, together with three children under ten years old, in the bedroom the eastern part of the house at the time of shelling at about 4:00 on 17 June, and that the 28-year-old woman had sustained minor shrapnel wounds to her right forearm. The SMM saw minor bruises and scrapes on her arm.

At the northern edge of Starolaspa, the SMM saw a similar size of fresh crater 8m east of a house, assessed as caused by an MLRS (BM-21) rocket fired from a south-westerly direction. The SMM saw north-west-facing windows of the house broken and shrapnel damage to its north-west-facing wall. In a garage attached to the north-western corner of the house (east-north-east of the impact site), the SMM observed that shrapnel had pierced the east-facing garage door and damaged a vehicle inside. The SMM also noted that shrapnel had pierced the walls of a shed about 10m north-west of the impact site and inside the shed saw small fragments as well as a dog that had been killed by the shrapnel. Residents of the house in their mid-sixties (man and woman) told the SMM that they had been asleep inside the house at the time of shelling at about 4:30 on 17 June and had been thrown out of bed by the shock wave of the impact.

In Yasynuvata the SMM saw a fresh crater on the concrete ground of a boarding school at 24 Tsentralnyi Mikroraion Street, assessed as caused by an 82mm mortar round fired from a south-south-westerly direction. The SMM observed the south-facing windows on the door of the school entrance damaged. A woman in her fifties at the school told the SMM that shelling had occurred at about 18:30 on 17 June and that no casualties had been reported.

In “LPR”-controlled Obozne (18km north of Luhansk) the SMM saw one fresh crater on a paved road 15m west of a checkpoint, assessed as caused by a 122mm round fired from a northerly direction. The SMM also observed five other fresh craters in a cultivated field around 500m east of the checkpoint. Due to security concerns, however, the SMM was unable to approach the impact sites. A female resident in her forties in Obozne and an armed “LPR” member at the checkpoint told the SMM that shelling had occurred between 23:00 and 1:00 on 17-18 June.

The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement process and to pursue full access to the disengagement areas of Stanytsia Luhanska (16km north-east of Luhansk), Zolote (60km west of Luhansk) and Petrivske (41km south of Donetsk), as foreseen in the Framework Decision of the Trilateral Contact Group relating to disengagement of forces and hardware of 21 September 2016. The SMM’s access remained restricted but the Mission was able to partially monitor them.*

On the evening and night of 16-17 June the SMM camera in Stanytsia Luhanska recorded, in sequence, one projectile in flight from north to south, three explosions assessed as impacts of automatic-grenade-launcher and rocket-propelled-grenade-launcher fire, one projectile in flight from north to south and three explosions (one undetermined, two assessed as impacts of automatic-grenade-launcher fire), all 0.3-1km at directions ranging from south-south-east to south-south-west and assessed as inside the disengagement area.

On the night of 15-16 June the SMM camera in government-controlled Zolote recorded one undetermined explosion 4-6km east-south-east, assessed as outside the disengagement area. On the evening and night of 16-17 June, the same camera recorded, in sequence, one undetermined explosion, one projectile in flight from south-west to north-east, eight projectiles in flight from east to west and one projectile in flight from south-east to north-west, all 4-6km at directions ranging from east to south-south-west (one projectile assessed as inside the disengagement area, the remainder as outside the disengagement area). On 18 June, the camera recorded one undetermined explosion 6-8km east-south-east, assessed as outside the disengagement area.

On 17 June, the SMM observed, from both sides of the contact line, ceasefire violations near the Zolote disengagement area. Positioned just west of government-controlled Zolote-2 (60km west of Luhansk), in about 20 minutes the SMM heard 15 explosions (eight assessed as outgoing artillery or mortar rounds of unknown calibre and seven as impacts of artillery or mortar rounds of unknown calibre) and four bursts of heavy-machine-gun and automatic-grenade-launcher fire, all 6-9km south. Positioned in government-controlled Zolote-4 (60km north-west of Luhansk), within one hour the SMM heard 38 explosions (19 assessed as outgoing artillery or mortar rounds of unknown calibre and 19 as impacts of artillery or mortar rounds of unknown calibre) and about 120 bursts of heavy-machine-gun, recoilless gun (type undetermined) and automatic-grenade-launcher fire, all 4-8km south-west. Positioned in “LPR”-controlled Pervomaisk (58km west of Luhansk), in about one hour the SMM heard 52 explosions (34 assessed as impacts of mortar (82mm) and artillery (122mm) rounds and 18 as outgoing mortar (82mm) rounds) and about 980 shots of IFV (BMP-2) cannon (30mm), heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all about 3km west. Positioned in “LPR”-controlled Molodizhne (63km north-west of Luhansk), the SMM heard one undetermined explosion about 2km north-north-east. The SMM assessed these ceasefire violations as having occurred outside the disengagement area and in the area between Molodizhne and government-controlled Katerynivka (64km west of Luhansk).

Aerial imagery available to the SMM revealed on 3 June a new trench (about 15m long) about 50m inside the disengagement area near “DPR”-controlled Petrivske.

The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons, in implementation of the Memorandum, the Package of Measures and its Addendum.

In violation of the withdrawal lines in government-controlled areas, on 18 June the SMM saw three towed howitzers (D-30 Lyagushka, 122mm) near Kostiantynivka (60km north of Donetsk) and six self-propelled howitzers (2S1 Gvozdika, 122mm) near Volnovakha (53km south of Donetsk).

Beyond withdraw lines but outside designated storage sites, the SMM saw four towed mortars (PM-38, 120mm) near Kostiantynivka.

The SMM observed weapons that could not be verified as withdrawn, as their storage does not comply with the criteria set in the 16 October 2015 notification. In non-government-controlled areas beyond the withdrawal lines the SMM saw 29 tanks (18 T-64 and 11 T-72) and noted four tanks (three T-64, one of which for the first time, and one T-72) missing.

The SMM observed armoured combat vehicles[2] in the security zone. In government-controlled areas, on 17 June the SMM saw one stationary armoured personnel carrier (APC) (MT-LB) with a mounted heavy-machine-gun in the woods close to a checkpoint east of Novotoshkivske (53km west of Luhansk) and an APC (BTR-80) carrying about five unarmed Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel and travelling south near Zolote-4.

The SMM observed the presence of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and mine hazard signs. On 18 June the SMM saw one rusted mortar fin (82mm) at the edge of a paved road about 1km south-west of the Stanytsia Luhanska bridge and just outside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. The fin was marked with white paint. In “LPR”-controlled Lyman (12km north-west of Luhansk), the SMM saw ten new red and white rectangular mine signs (with the word “Stop Mines” written in Russian) attached to 1.5m-tall wooden sticks at 10-15m intervals in a field 50-100m west of a nearby house.

The SMM facilitated and monitored repairs to essential infrastructure, co-ordinated by the JCCC. Near “LPR”-controlled Pervomaisk on 17 and 18 June the SMM observed repairs to high voltage power lines between the Mykhailivka substation in an “LPR”-controlled part of Zolote and “LPR”-controlled Almazna (55km west of Luhansk).

The SMM continued to follow up on the water supply situation. At a square in government-controlled Semyhiria (58km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM saw about seven residents, including elderly women and a girl (5-6 years old), with buckets. They told the SMM that they were waiting for water to be distributed by an international organization.

The SMM continued to monitor the situation of civilians travelling across the Stanytsia Luhanska bridge. On 17 June at the government checkpoint north of the bridge, at 10:20 the SMM saw about 400 people queuing to enter government-controlled areas and about 1,000 queuing in the opposite direction. Three hours later, the SMM saw almost the same number of people queueing to travel in both directions.

On 18 June the SMM monitored a march in Kyiv organized by activists of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community. The Mission observed about 2,500 people (men and women aged mainly between 20 and 50, some of them with children) marching from Volodymyrska Street to Lev Tolstoy Square. It noted about 5,500 police and National Guard officers, some of them wearing riot gear, and 2.5m-high steel fences across the streets exiting the square. The SMM also observed the police and National Guard officers encircle and isolate a group of about 120 people (mostly men, aged between 20 and 30) blocking part of the planned march route on Volodymyrska Street between the Taras Shevchenko National University and Taras Shevchenko Park. Some of these people were holding banners containing messages against the march. The SMM saw the police use tear gas against a few of them. The Kyiv police later stated on its website that two participants had been physically attacked after leaving the march. The SMM spoke with one of the alleged victims, as well as march organizers, who confirmed the incident and stated that he and his friend were assaulted by several young men who had followed them after the march.

The SMM continued monitoring in Kherson, Odessa, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Chernivtsi.

*Restrictions of SMM’s freedom of movement or other impediments to fulfilment of its mandate

The SMM’s monitoring and freedom of movement are restricted by security hazards and threats, including risks posed by mines, UXO and other impediments – which vary from day to day. The SMM’s mandate provides for safe and secure access throughout Ukraine. All signatories of the Package of Measures have agreed on the need for this safe and secure access, that restriction of the SMM’s freedom of movement constitutes a violation, and on the need for rapid response to these violations. They have also agreed that the JCCC should contribute to such response and co-ordinate mine clearance. The SMM’s operations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions remained restricted following the fatal incident of 23 April near Pryshyb; these restrictions continued to limit the Mission’s observations; these restrictions continued to limit the Mission’s observations, including at the disengagement area near Petrivske.

Denial of access:

• On 17 and 18 June, a Ukrainian officer of the JCCC told the SMM that no demining activities had taken place during the previous 24 hours in the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area and that, with the exception of the main road, the Mission’s safety could not be guaranteed in the surrounding areas due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC.
• On 17 and 18 June, the SMM could not proceed further east into the Zolote disengagement area from government-controlled Katerynivka due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. The SMM informed the JCCC.
• On 17 and 18 June, armed “LPR” members told the SMM that they could not guarantee the safety of the Mission in the Zolote disengagement area due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC.
• On 17 and 18 June, the SMM could not travel across the bridge in Shchastia as Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel said the road south of the bridge was mined. The SMM informed the JCCC.
• On 18 June, armed “DPR” members at a checkpoint north-west of Sidove (106km south of Donetsk) prevented the SMM from entering the village, claiming that they were instructed not to let the SMM pass the checkpoint and that the area was closed to foreigners. The Mission observed civilian vehicles proceeding through the checkpoint. The SMM informed the JCCC.
• On 18 June, an armed “DPR” member at a checkpoint in Oleksandrivske (formerly Rozy Liuksemburh, 90km south-east of Donetsk) initially told the SMM that there were no live-fire exercises taking place nearby. When the SMM attempted to proceed east, however, he told the SMM that no vehicles were permitted to pass due to ongoing live-fire exercises.

[1] Please see the annexed table for complete breakdown of the ceasefire violations as well as map of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions marked with locations featured in this report.

[2] This hardware is not proscribed by the provisions of the Minsk agreements on the withdrawal of weapons.