Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine, based on information received as of 19:30, 26 May 2016

This report is for media and the general public.

The SMM observed more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared to the previous day. The Mission followed up on reports of shelling and civilian casualties. It continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons, and noted armoured combat vehicles and an anti-aircraft weapon in the security zone. The SMM observed the presence of unexploded ordnance (UXO), monitored the situation of civilians at checkpoints, and observed border areas not controlled by the Government. The Mission’s freedom of movement was restricted on seven occasions.* The SMM monitored the situation of demobilized veterans in Chernivtsi and Lviv regions.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations[1] in Donetsk region, compared to previous days.

The majority of ceasefire violations were noted to the north and north-east of Donetsk city. From its position at the Donetsk central railway station (“DPR”-controlled, 6km north-west of Donetsk city centre), the SMM heard more than 190 undetermined explosions and recorded 37 airbursts 2-5km north and north-north-east in the morning and early afternoon of 26 May. Positioned just south of government-controlled Avdiivka (17km north of Donetsk), the SMM heard approximately 180 undetermined explosions, over 100 explosions assessed as impacts of mainly 82mm but also 120mm mortar rounds, six impacts of 122mm artillery and one impact of 152mm artillery, 7-9km south-east of its position over the course of the day. While in Avdiivka, the SMM observed a military ambulance pick up three Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers, one of whom was severely injured, as confirmed to the SMM over the phone by the head doctor at a hospital in Avdiivka. Over the same time period, positioned in “DPR”-controlled Yasynuvata (16km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard approximately 180 undetermined explosions 1-4km west and south-west, and 13 undetermined explosions 3-4km west-north-west. The explosions were accompanied by bursts of heavy-machine-gun, anti-aircraft and small-arms fire throughout the day.

The SMM also noted isolated, but intense instances of fighting in the Horlivka-Debaltseve area. Whilst in “DPR”-controlled Debaltseve (58km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard 30 undetermined explosions 2-3km west over a four-minute period, late in the morning of 26 May. Shortly after noon, from its position in Zaitseve (50km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard 12 undetermined explosions over a one minute period, 2-3km south-west.

The SMM observed fewer ceasefire violations in Luhansk region compared to the previous day. Whilst in Stanytsia Luhanska (government-controlled, 16km north-east of Luhansk), the SMM heard 89 undetermined explosions assessed as caused by automatic grenade launchers and saw 24 outgoing tracers, moving from east to west, 2-4km south-west of its position.

The SMM followed up on reports of shelling on both sides of the contact line. The SMM analysed four craters in “DPR”-controlled Dokuchaievsk (30km south-west of Donetsk) and found 120mm mortar tailfins in each of the craters, fuses were found in two of the craters. The SMM assessed the craters to be fresh and the projectiles to have been fired from a south-westerly direction. No civilian casualties were reported. An above-ground gas pipeline approximately 15-20 meters west of one of the craters had a hole in it. A Russian Federation representative of the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC) and two “DPR” members were also present at the site. Approximately 2-3km south-east of government-controlled Krymske (42km north-west of Luhansk), the SMM analysed a crater which it assessed as caused by an anti-tank guided missile fired from a southerly direction. According to a JCCC Ukrainian Armed Forces representative, the missile had been fired on 24 May, targeting a military truck driving in the area.

The SMM followed up on media reports of civilian casualties in Kirovskyi district of Donetsk city on 23 May. An armed “DPR” member told the SMM that one civilian woman had been injured in shelling and brought to a hospital in Donetsk city. Two personnel on duty at the hospital were unable to confirm any casualties from 23 to 25 May and contacted a second hospital in the city which also was unable to confirm the casualty.

In relation to the implementation of the Addendum to the Package of Measures, the SMM revisited Ukrainian Armed Forces permanent storage sites whose locations corresponded with the withdrawal lines, and noted that four anti-tank guns (D-44, 85mm) were missing.

In violation of the respective withdrawal lines, the SMM observed a towed howitzer (D-30, 122mm) near government-controlled Yantarne (48km west of Donetsk) and an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) spotted three mortars (PM-38, 120mm) in “DPR”-controlled Horlivka (39km north-east of Donetsk). The SMM also observed additional weapons.

Beyond the withdrawal lines and outside storage sites, the SMM observed five tanks (T-72) being transported west near government-controlled Iskra (90km west of Donetsk).

The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of heavy weapons as foreseen in the Minsk Package of Measures.

In violation of the withdrawal lines, the SMM observed one surface-to-air missile system (9K35 Strela‑10) near government-controlled Nyzhnie (56km north-west of Luhansk), which the SMM had last seen at this location on 22 May 2016 (see SMM Daily Report 23 May).

The SMM has yet to receive the full information requested in the 16 October 2015 notification. The SMM revisited locations known to the SMM as heavy weapons holding areas, even though they do not comply with the specific criteria set out for permanent storage sites in the notification.

In government-controlled areas beyond the respective withdrawal lines, the SMM revisited such locations and observed 23 multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS; BM-21 Grad, 122mm) and 12 self-propelled howitzers (2S3 Akatsiya, 152mm). The SMM noted that one MLRS (BM-21 Grad, 122mm) was missing (first observed missing on 23 February 2016). The SMM was denied access to another site at which three surface-to-air missile systems (two SA-8 Osa, 120mm and one SA-13 Strela-10, 120mm) had previously been recorded as present. The SMM noted that two sites were abandoned, one since 1 May and the other was found to be abandoned for the first time. The SMM noted that in total, 17 self-propelled howitzers (six 2S1 Gvozdika, 122mm and 11 2S3 Akatsiya, 152mm) were missing from these two sites.

On 26 May, aerial surveillance imagery available to the SMM revealed the presence of a significant number of weapons near “LPR”-controlled Miusynsk (62km south-west of Luhansk): in violation of the respective withdrawal lines - 16 MLRS; beyond the respective withdrawal lines - 31 artillery weapons (20 self-propelled and 11 towed) and 14 tanks beyond the withdrawal lines and outside of storage sites; as well as 64 armoured combat vehicles.

The SMM observed the presence of armoured combat vehicles and an anti-aircraft weapon in the security zone. The SMM observed two armoured personnel carriers (APCs) travelling north in “DPR”-controlled Donetsk city. In “LPR”-controlled Vesela Hora (16km north of Luhansk) the SMM observed an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BMP-2). In government-controlled areas, the SMM observed an anti-aircraft gun (ZU-23) in Krymske, three armoured reconnaissance vehicles (BRMD-2) in Zolote (60km north-west of Luhansk), one APC (BTR-60) near Popasna (69km west of Luhansk), one APC (BTR-70) near Trokhizbenka (32km north-west of Luhansk) and one APC (BTR-4) near Nyzhnie. In addition, an SMM long-range UAV spotted two APCs in government-controlled Novhorodske (35km north of Donetsk), 21 APCs in Horlivka, 19 APCs in Debaltseve and one APC (BTR) in “DPR”-controlled Holmivskyi (49km north-east of Donetsk).

The SMM continued to observe the presence and effects of UXO. The head surgeon of the trauma department and the deputy chief doctor at the hospital in “DPR”-controlled Yenakiieve (41km north-east of Donetsk) confirmed media reports that three children had been injured while playing with UXO. The doctors stated that a 14-year-old boy, who was in stable condition, had suffered shrapnel wounds which resulted in injuries to his liver and eyes. The two other children (an 11-year-old boy and 14 year-old girl) had suffered superficial injuries. The parents of one of the children told the SMM that their child had found the fuse of a phosphorous anti-tank round in a house and the children had been throwing the fuse back and forth when it exploded in the air. At the location where the incident allegedly occurred, the SMM observed numerous piles of old artillery shells, most within 75 meters of civilian housing. According to local residents present at the location, the remnants date to heavy fighting in February 2015. The SMM informed the JCCC of the situation.

The SMM continued to monitor queues at crossing routes near the contact line. At the government checkpoint north of Stanytsia Luhanska bridge, border guards told the SMM that the opening hours of the crossing-point had been extended to 06:00-20:00 as of 26 May. In the morning, the SMM observed approximately 300 pedestrians waiting to enter government-controlled areas and ten pedestrians waiting to walk in the opposite direction. The SMM observed an elderly man being carried on a stretcher on the bridge by Ukrainian emergency services personnel. A member of the emergency services told the SMM that they had assisted three people that morning already: two had received treatment on the spot and one had to be taken to a hospital. The queue had decreased significantly by the afternoon.

The SMM monitored four areas alongside the border with the Russian Federation outside government control. Upon arrival at the Marynivka (“DPR”-controlled, 78km east of Donetsk) border crossing point, the SMM observed four civilian trucks waiting to cross toward the Russian Federation. One civilian truck, two civilian cars (one with a Russian licence plate), and three motorcycles passed in this direction during the approximately one hour that the SMM was present. At the “DPR”-controlled Uspenka (73km south-east of Donetsk) border crossing point, the SMM observed 37 civilian trucks waiting to leave Ukraine. One truck driver told the SMM that he had been waiting for six hours. Several truck drivers at the two crossing points told the SMM that they would use Ukrainian passports to cross. Two women (24 and 60 years old) told the SMM that they had come to Ukraine to do shopping. While monitoring  the “LPR“-controlled pedestrian border crossing point in Novoborovytsi (79km south of Luhansk), the SMM observed, during approximately 30 minutes, one woman passing the crossing point to Novoborovytsi on foot. At the “LPR”-controlled Dovzhanskyi (84km south-east of Luhansk) border crossing point, the SMM observed a line of six cars and two buses waiting to exit Ukraine. While present for approximately 40 minutes at the border, the SMM observed four trucks crossing into Ukraine, all covered with canvas tarpaulins concealing the cargo inside from view. All vehicles had Ukrainian licence plates, with the exception of one civilian car with a Russian Federation licence plate as indicated above.

The SMM continued to monitor the situation of veterans of the Anti-Terrorism Operation (ATO) in Donbas. The mayor of Kuznetsovsk (211km north-east of Lviv) in Rivne region, told the SMM that there were 200 demobilized ATO veterans in the city and the authorities faced difficulties with the allotment of land plots. According to him, the city has been able to provide 50 plots for garages and 87 agrarian plots would become available in a nearby village, while local authorities also have planned to provide another 100 plots in nearby villages. A member of the village council in Bohdashiv (174km north-east of Lviv) told the SMM that of 33 residents who are ATO veterans, only eight have been allotted land plots and no other plots were available. Government officials in Busk (44km east of Lviv) and Zastavna (27km north of Chernivtsi), told the SMM that there were technical obstacles in providing land plots to veterans. These included lack of available land, changing the designation of available land (for example from “agriculture” to “construction”), and a lack of co-ordination between relevant government bodies. Difficulties in receiving land plots have been confirmed by veterans and civil society activists in Chernivtsi.

The SMM continued to monitor the situation in Kherson, Odessa, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Dnepropetrovsk and Kyiv.

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

The SMM’s monitoring is restrained by security hazards and threats, including risks posed by mines and unexploded ordnance, and by restrictions of its freedom of movement 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.

Denial of access:

• A member of the Ukrainian Armed Forces did not allow the SMM to inspect the serial numbers of weapons at a heavy weapons holding area. The SMM informed the JCCC.
• Since 20 May, armed “DPR” members continue to keep the power supply to SMM’s repeater in Donetsk city disconnected. As a result, SMM remote monitoring equipment at “DPR”-controlled Oktiabr mine and in government-controlled Avdiivka cannot operate (see SMM Daily Report 21 May 2016).

Delay:

• Two armed men standing in the middle of the road stopped the SMM near “DPR”-controlled Khreshchatytske (formerly Krasnoarmiiske, 32km north-east of Mariupol) and stated that the SMM could not continue due to mine clearance activity ahead. The SMM was allowed to pass after an approximately 50 minute delay and did not observe any mine clearance activity. The SMM informed the JCCC.
• A Ukrainian Armed Forces commander stopped the SMM from entering a compound west of Andriivka (41km north-east of Mariupol) and demanded that the SMM inform him if any of the patrol members were Russian Federation citizens. After a 23-minute delay the SMM was allowed to enter the compound without providing the requested information.

Other impediments:

• While flying an SMM UAV near the Stanytsia Luhanska railway bridge, the SMM observed that Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel were using smoke flares at their position near the bridge. The SMM received a call from a Ukrainian Armed Forces JCCC representative approximately 26 minutes after the launch of the UAV, stating that the SMM should land the UAV because the Ukrainian Armed forces had failed to co-ordinate with their personnel on the ground. The UAV’s Global Positioning System was jammed while flying near the bridge and was consequently recalled.
• While flying over government-controlled areas near Bohoiavlenka (46km south-west of Donetsk), the SMM heard five single shots and one burst of small-arms fire at the location over which the UAV was flying, 1-1.3km west. Initial analysis of the UAV footage revealed the presence of trucks loaded with ammunition boxes hidden in a nearby forest and an object which appeared to be a towed artillery piece at the location where the shooting had occurred, within the 25km withdrawal lines. The UAV was not damaged and the SMM informed the JCCC.
• The Global Position System of an unmanned aerial vehicle was jammed while flying between Debaltseve and Horlivka.

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