Daily and spot reports from the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. It continued to observe armed men and armoured personnel carriers in Luhansk city centre. The SMM observed shelling damage in a residential area of Dovhe. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas.* It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Zalizne and Betmanove, as well as, reportedly, the transport of the bodies of deceased soldiers near Novotoshkivske and Sentianivka. The SMM followed up on the situation of civilians from Travneve close to the contact line.

The SMM continued to monitor the implementation of the provisions of the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum and the work of the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC). A Grad rocket exploded near a civilian bus at a Ukrainian Army Checkpoint near Volnovakha, killing 12 civilians and injuring 17...

The SMM continued to monitor the implementation of the provisions of the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum and the work of the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC). There were bomb explosions in Kherson and Odessa. The Lviv mayor’s residence was attacked and hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.

This update is provided for the media and the public Throughout the day of 14 April 2014, the western and central parts of Ukraine remained calm, with routine police presence, whereas the situation in the south-eastern and eastern regions of the country remained tense. The situation in Donetsk and Luhansk districts continued to cause concerns owing to the observed presence of masked individuals in several towns of the region, occupying several administrative buildings and erecting barricades and roadblocks.

At 12:00 hrs the SMM monitored an event in Kharkiv where some 150 people of mixed gender and age expressed their appreciation to the soldiers serving in the east and some activists installed a memorial stone for soldiers by the pedestal of Liberty Square. The police monitored the gathering, which ended peacefully...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM followed up on a civilian casualty caused by the explosion of an object in Myrne and observed multiple impact sites in Staromykhailivka and Donetsk city. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it observed ceasefire violations assessed as inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and elsewhere. The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor repairs to power lines near Veselohorivka and a water pipeline in Obozne. The SMM observed a restriction measure hearing in the trial of the captain of the fishing ship Nord, who was released on his own recognisance...

The SMM recorded a low number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk region – mostly around Horlivka – and only one instance in Luhansk region. It experienced no specific freedom-of-movement restrictions during the reporting period. The SMM observed high numbers of people crossing the contact line, mostly into areas controlled by the Government...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region between the evenings of 24 and 25 August, compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 25 and 26 August, the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more ceasefire violations in Luhansk region, compared with the previous 24 hours. The SMM followed up on a civilian casualty in Vrubivka. The Mission saw fresh damage caused by shelling to civilian properties in residential areas of Vrubivka and Staromykhailivka. The Mission recorded ceasefire violations inside the Stanytsia Luhanska and Petrivske disengagement areas. The SMM’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas, as well as in Marinka, Zaichenko, Yasne and close to Novoazovsk, Izvaryne and Voznesenivka near the border with the Russian Federation.* The SMM observed that the entry-exit checkpoint in Maiorsk remained closed. The Mission continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station. It facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to water infrastructure near Pervomaisk and Zolote, repairs to residential houses in Avdiivka, as well as demining in Berezove.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. Small arms were fired near an SMM patrol in Pikuzy. The Mission observed damage to civilian properties caused by shelling in Sakhanka. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske and observed an explosion near the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and elsewhere, including, again, in border areas near Izvaryne, Sievernyi and Voznesenivka (near the border with the Russian Federation), and at a checkpoint near Donetsk city. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Poltavka. The Mission continued to facilitate access for workers to and from the Donetsk Filtration Station. In Kyiv, the SMM monitored a court hearing. In Kharkiv, the Mission followed up on the situation of internally displaced persons...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the previous reporting period and more in Luhansk region. The Mission observed damage to residences in Chervonyi Yar in Luhansk region and Bohdanivka in Donetsk region due to shelling. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote, and Petrivske, and recorded ceasefire violations near the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three areas and elsewhere. Staff in schools near the contact line in non-government-controlled areas told the SMM they had been ordered not to speak with the SMM. The Mission facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure near Shchastia, Zolote, Artema, Krasnyi Lyman, and Stanytsia Luhanska. The SMM visited a border area not under government control. The Mission monitored two gatherings in Kyiv and followed up on reports of an explosion in Uman...