Spot report by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), 12 September 2014: Simultaneous Release of Hostages/Prisoners

This report is for media and the general public.

SUMMARY

The SMM observed the simultaneous release of 68 hostages/prisoners in the Donetsk region.

DETAIL

In the early hours of 12 September, the SMM observed the release of hostages/prisoners close to Avdeevka (18 km north of Donetsk city).

The Ukrainian side handed over 31 members of the “Donetsk People’s Republic” (“DPR”), whilst the “DPR” side handed over 37 Ukrainian servicemen. The hand-over was carried out in a professional and cordial manner, and was completed by 03:40hrs.

The simultaneous release followed a verbal agreement between the sides made the previous evening – as part of the implementation of the Protocol signed in Minsk on 5 September – at an SMM-facilitated session of the Trilateral Contact Group held in Kyiv.